In the wake of the Southport riots in August Yvette Cooper commissioned a “rapid analytical sprint” review into extremism policy, whose contents have now been leaked to think tank Policy Exchange. In the view of the Home Office:
Policy Exchange warns counter-terror forces’ attention would be diluted by the recommendations, which also threaten free speech and to tar “swathes of the public” as far-right for no reason. Labour claims it has rejected the widened definition of extremism and has yet to sign off on the report. The Home Office says it is “considering a wide range of potential next steps arising” from the document. Nonetheless, the above is the internal view of the Home Office. And Whitehall usually gets its way…
Paula Barker, Liverpool Wavertree MP backing Andy Burnham, told Times Radio there wouldn’t be trouble from the markets under Burnham:
“The markets will have to fall in line.”