STORY
Referrals to the Government’s Prevent counter-radicalisation programme rose by 39% to 10,293 in the latest annual figures, the highest total recorded since the current data series began. The increase followed heightened concern about people displaying an interest in extreme violence after the Southport murders committed by Axel Rudakubana.
The figures show that extreme right-wing ideology was the largest identified ideological category, accounting for around one fifth of referrals and increasing on the previous year. Referrals linked to Islamist extremism fell, while a newer category covering fascination with extreme violence without a clear ideological motivation accounted for hundreds of cases.
Rudakubana had previously been referred to Prevent on three occasions, but the cases were closed because officials did not identify a clear terrorist ideology. The case prompted renewed scrutiny of how the programme deals with individuals whose behaviour presents serious concerns without fitting established extremist categories.