Councillors vow to take steps to tackle racism

AFTERMATH OF DISORDER IN CITY IN AUGUST IS DEBATED

- ALISON STEPHENSON

PLYMOUTH City Council councillors have vowed to stand up to racism, hate and violence in the city and promote community cohesion.

They say riots at the beginning of August this year did not reflect the values and opinions of most residents, or the “Janner spirit”, but at a full council meeting this week councillors shared their experiences of racism in the city, admitting that, even though Plymouth had come along way from the 1970s, it still has a journey ahead.

The city gained unwanted national media attention when it was the scene of protests, following a knife attack in Southport which led to the deaths of three young girls. Anti-immigration and anti-racism protesters confronted each other in Royal Parade and violence broke out. Around 150 officers in riot gear were sent to deal with the incident, following which 26 people were charged, and 19 have been sentenced.

In a motion this week, Cllr Daniel Steel (Labour, Plymouth Radstock) called for the council to ask the Government to develop a robust counter-extremism strategy to identify and address the drivers of violence, and for annual funding for Plymouth’s Community Safety Partnership to identify people susceptible to radicalisation.