Police fear extremism still a threat despite fall in reports

Counterterror police fear potential threats may be flying below the radar because of the coronavirus pandemic, after the number of people flagged for radicalisation plummeted by a fifth in a year.

- LIZZIE DEARDEN

Senior officers had warned of a “perfect storm” for extremism, as lockdown left young and vulnerable people spending more time online amid a “rise in propaganda by all sides”. But figures released this week showed that the number of people referred to the Prevent counter-extremism programme in the year to March had dropped by 22 per cent, to the lowest level in five years.

Police fear the decrease reflects a fall in reporting, rather than a lowering of the terror threat or the number of people being drawn into hateful ideologies. It comes as the security services were caught off-guard by two terror attacks within a month, in Essex and Liverpool, and raised the national threat level to severe, meaning further attacks are “highly likely”.

National counterterrorism police believe the closure of schools and colleges prompted by the pandemic caused a substantial drop in reports from teachers. Det Supt Matthew Davison, of Counter Terrorism Policing North East, said Covid restrictions had “made it more difficult for young and vulnerable people to access support services and significantly reduced contact with those most likely to recognise the early signs of radicalisation”.