Community cohesion: First Minister's statement - 3 September 2024

Presiding Officer, during the summer recess, everyone was affected by the dreadful, tragic deaths of three girls in Southport.

On the 29^th of July, Bebe King, aged six, Elsie Dot Stancombe, aged seven, and Alice da Silva Aguiar, aged nine, who were attending a summer dance class, were attacked and killed.

My heart goes out to the families of the girls who lost their lives.

No parent should have to face the loss of a child, let alone in such appalling circumstances.

Ten others were also seriously injured in this horrific and shocking attack.

My thoughts have been with the community of Southport who, whilst facing this unthinkable tragedy, then faced further distress.

Starting in Southport – and sparked by false information and rumour on social media as to the identity and background of the perpetrator of the attack – communities in England and Northern Ireland were then made to endure disorder and rioting on top of their grief and concern for those affected.

This led to considerable distress to residents, significant damage caused to businesses, and a number of casualties – including police officers who were injured in the line of duty.

Presiding Officer, let me be clear, this activity was not and should not be classed as protest.

This was violence and thuggery, pure and simple – perpetrated by those with a far-right ideology, by those who have been taken in by that rhetoric, and by criminals.

Far from having legitimate concerns, those indulging in these mindless acts were doing so from a place of racism, Islamophobia and anti-immigrant sentiment. This cannot and should not be tolerated anywhere.

It is absolutely unacceptable for anyone to live in fear of leaving their home, or to feel nervous about sending their children to school, or to be afraid to use certain services or transport.

Justice has been done in the English courts, with sentences reflecting the serious criminality perpetrated.

To date, Scotland has not had to deal with incidents of a similar nature, despite the attempts to organise these via social media.

But we must continue to be vigilant against ideologies that can lead to such violence; we cannot take the view that we may be immune from related disorder occurring on own our doorsteps.

Were we to see anything similar in Scotland, our courts have robust sentencing powers available to them, to use as they see fit.

And the Justice Secretary and I have been in regular contact with Police Scotland, who remain alert to the prospect of disorder, and are working with their colleagues in other parts of the United Kingdom to ensure they can respond accordingly and immediately if such a response is required.

I am grateful to the Chief Constable, and want to thank her, and all in Police Scotland, for their continued work and commitment in keeping our communities safe.

Presiding Officer, we should rightly be proud of our history as a nation that values both free speech and welcoming those who want to live and work here.

We can be proud that as a society, we celebrate, value, and protect diversity in our communities.

But we must challenge those who would deny those values.

We must guard against the prejudice, discrimination and misinformation that aim to incite hatred and violence.

And we must remember that those who seek to divide us are in the very small minority.

And let me be clear, it is a small minority.

Whilst we watched the violence unfold in communities – and heard about how social media was being used to whip up the disorder and violence that several towns witnessed over nights in August – we also saw many more people and communities come together – to express how this was not reflective of their towns.

We saw many more people work together to clean up the mess and damage in their neighbourhoods.

And we can all take heart that, on the 10^th of August, thousands of people took to the streets across the UK, to protest against the racist thuggery and anti-immigrant rhetoric they had witnessed.

Far, far more people than had taken part in the disorder itself.

Presiding Officer, our relationships with our diverse communities are crucial to community cohesion, and I know that many people felt scared or uneasy in those early days of August.

Violence, prejudice, racism, Islamophobia and antisemitism, have no place in our society, and nobody should ever be subjected to them. 

So, I want to reassure everyone impacted that this Government will always work to ensure every person living in Scotland is protected, and that we are united in our opposition to anyone who would seek to use disorder as a means of division.

In the first week of August, I attended the Edinburgh Central Mosque, and, at my invitation, faith leaders came together as well.

This provided an opportunity for us all to make clear that conflict and hatred have no place here.

Faith leaders from across Scotland continue to promote mutual respect and share a common desire for everybody to be safe within our society.

And, as First Minister, I assured them that desire is shared by all Scotland’s political leaders.

Presiding Officer, I also convened a meeting and briefing between political leaders and Police Scotland, and I thank colleagues in this Chamber for taking the time to attend that event.

This enabled senior officers to brief us on the work they are undertaking to keep people safe – as they engage with communities to provide reassurance and ensure none feel marginalised, isolated or vulnerable. 

In recent weeks, the service has had considerable engagement with Muslim and other minority communities.

Greater officer visibility around Mosques and hotels housing asylum seekers has also been well received.

Let me be absolutely clear, to anyone in Scotland considering mimicking the kind of vile behaviour we have witnessed in parts of England and Northern Ireland this summer, your actions will not be tolerated, you will be dealt with robustly, and criminal actions online will be taken just as seriously.

I want to reassure people in Scotland that we have plans and preparations in place to ensure everybody is kept safe in this period.

And that we continue to work cooperatively with a wide range of organisations throughout the country to tackle racism, hatred and to promote inclusion.

Presiding Officer, let me turn now to the role of social media and how its use – or should I say misuse – has proven how easy it is for false information to spread.

Following the tragic events in Southport, social media was a key factor in the first incident of disorder which then took place.

In Scotland we had an occasion where untrue speculation was spread about the perpetrator of an incident in Stirling. I wish to commend Police Scotland for their swift action in countering this misinformation and, I believe, in helping to reduce the risk of any possible conflict in Scotland.

While we all have an individual duty to question whether everything we read online is actually true, it is very clear to me that the major organisations behind these platforms also have a duty.

A duty – both moral and legal – to take action to ensure that individuals in our society are not subjected to hate and threatening behaviour, and that communities are protected from violence.

I wrote to the main social media companies, asking them to promptly outline the decisive steps they plan to take on this matter, and we have engaged constructively with the United Kingdom Government on this question.

Social media companies have assured me that safety teams have been working to detect any associated violation of their Terms of Service, and that they have taken action, which includes account suspension and content removal. 

But recent events suggest that there is much more work to do, to ensure hateful content and misinformation do not proliferate.

Presiding Officer, I want to conclude by emphasising to anyone who feels fearful of being targeted, for who they are or what they believe, that we stand in solidarity with you.

Scotland is a diverse, multicultural society where everyone is welcome, and I want us to be united in our opposition to anyone who would seek to use disorder and violence to divide people.

However, we are not immune to the actions of a violent, misguided minority and therefore we must remain vigilant.

People in Scotland, who are feeling afraid, marginalised, or isolated as the result of this summer’s events, should rightly look to their parliamentarians to stand with them – and we do.

As First Minister of Scotland, I will always be emphatic that violence and conflict have no place in our communities.

The Scottish Government is committed to building cohesive communities, within which divisive narratives will not resonate.

It is in our power to address hatred and prejudice by tackling its root causes. The most powerful and effective way to do this is by bringing communities together to learn from one another.

Standing for tolerance and equality, and against hate and violence, is for all of us in this Chamber, and across society, to commit to.

The importance of ‘One Scotland’, where people live in safety, and peace and have the opportunity to flourish, cannot be understated.

I would like to close by reflecting on the words of Sabir Zazai, Chief Executive of the Scottish Refugee Council, who was among the community leaders I met in August.

Sabir emphasised the importance of nourishing community togetherness, of shared values, and of the need to “build bridges and bonds between communities”.

Presiding Officer, let us all affirm our commitment to doing just that.

Bridges must be built, but they must also be maintained. That is the approach we should all take.