NEO-NAZI FEARS FOR SCHOOLKIDS
Far-right nuts hit a record
A RECORD number of kids are on an anti-terrorism course to stop them becoming neo-nazis.
Last year 70 under-15s with far-right views were referred to Channel – which helps teens at risk of radicalisation.
And 129 aged 15 to 20 were being looked at for the same reason.
The figures compare with 20 under15s and 47 aged 15 to 20 five years ago.
Over that period, the number deemed by Channel to be at risk of Islamic extremism fell from 262 to 154.
The Home Office stats raise fears of a fresh generation of fanatics like Thomas Mair – the maniac serving life for killing MP Jo Cox in Birstall, West Yorks, in 2016.
And they mirror a rise in cases of Hitlerloving teenagers caught using the internet to spread race hate from their bedrooms.
Last month, a TV probe exposed how a group called Patriotic Alternative is grooming kids. Secret footage caught its 17-year-old poster boy Barkley Walsh – an online follower since 13 – boasting of his neo- Nazi pals. C4’s Dispatches also showed group leader Mark Collett, 41, and sidekick Laura Tyrie praising Walsh.
Also last month, a 14-year-old from Darlington became one of the youngest convicted of terrorism offences. He talked of carrying out a school shooting, had bomb making manuals and contacted other far-right fanatics online.
In April, neo-nazi Thomas Leech, 19, who posted a “call to arms” for the white race, got two years at Manchester
crown court. And in February, Hitler fan Connor Burke, 19, of Bexleyheath, south London, was jailed for sending a bomb manual to fellow extremists.
Other shocking cases include neonazis Michal Szewczuk, 19, from Leeds, and Oskar Dunn-koczorowski, 18, from west London, who were jailed in 2019 for encouraging an attack on Prince Harry for marrying a mixed race woman. They were part of a now banned group called Sonnenkrieg Division.
The founder of one campaign group claims economic woes could be a factor in the rising cases.
Nigel Bromage, of Exit Hate, said: “In tough times, the far-right has always built support using people from different ethnicities as scapegoats. We cannot let them do this.
“Britain is never better than when we stand together. We need to support people to walk away from hate via education, compassion and understanding.”
Channel is a voluntary course and part of the Prevent scheme set up in 2003. That was initially aimed at pinpointing people who could get sucked into Islamist terror – but now spots more right-wing fanatics. Most cases come from concerns raised by teachers and police. A Government spokesman said: “We are committed to confronting terrorism in all forms, including the extreme right.
“Since 2015, over 3,000 people have been supported through Channel to move away from violent ideologies.
“We remain focused on disrupting activities of the most dangerous extremists, supporting those who stand up to their hateful rhetoric and preventing people being drawn into terrorism.”