The rioting that has taken place in Belfast in recent days has many similarities with the violence that erupted across many British cities following the fatal stabbing of three girls in Southport on July 29th.
The ostensible rationale for this campaign of terror perpetrated by far-right activists is that the UK is being overrun by illegal migrants, who are in turn responsible for a spike in serious crime.
This disinformation has been very effective in stoking tensions, but it has no basis in fact. This is particularly the case in Northern Ireland. The latest available figures show that in 2022, 27,016 people came to live in Northern Ireland while 24,702 people left – a net gain of just 2,314, which is marginal for a total population of 1.9 million.
To drill down into these figures, about 5,000 people who settled in Northern Ireland in 2022 came from outside the UK, and the biggest share of these migrants (3,732) come from India. It is likely that most of these are medical workers and other highly skilled people.
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Northern Ireland accounts for roughly 2.9 per cent of people seeking asylum in the UK. At the end of December 2023, there were 2,831 people seeking asylum support there. In other words, Northern Ireland is not experiencing a wave of out of control immigration. What is equally true is that the mostly young men behind the rioting in Belfast do not represent the views of the vast majority of people in Northern Ireland.
According to the latest survey figures released by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency, the proportion of respondents who agreed that asylum seekers should be allowed to stay in Northern Ireland has increased significantly between 2018, the first year of the survey, and 2022 – from 54 per cent to 70 per cent.
According to the PSNI, most of the Belfast rioters come from Loyalist areas of the city and there is evidence that Loyalist paramilitaries are partly responsible for orchestrating these activities, Community leaders within Loyalism must make every effort to bring an end to the violence.
But there are much broader challenges facing all politicians in Northern Ireland, which has some of the highest levels of deprivation in the UK. A lack of investment has resulted in a shortage of housing and pressure on state services.
Every society is being assailed by far-right social media campaigns that are stoking anti-migrant tensions, but they are gaining more traction in economically disadvantaged areas.
Although now back up and running, Stormont has been suspended for a total of five years since 2017. Political stasis inevitably leads to economic stagnation. Politicians from all sides must ensure that this is being addressed and create a sense of forward momentum. That will be the most effective way of combatting the hate and racism which has been on display in Belfast.