THE BBC has been slated for describing riots in Greater Manchester over the weekend as “pro-British”.
Reporter Phillip Norton was describing scenes in Bolton on Sunday evening where violence broke out between a group who had joined a protest entitled Enough is Enough: Stand Up for Our Country that had been widely shared on social media – including by right-wing activist Tommy Robinson – and a counter group.
Missiles were thrown between the groups including smoke bombs, eggs and fireworks.
But the BBC has come under fire after Norton described those involved in the Robinson-promoted demonstration as “pro-British”.
There have so far been no reports of any riots in Scotland and Scots are becoming increasingly frustrated with violence in England and Northern Ireland being described as British.
Norton said: “For around half an hour it was quite peaceful, there was a small camp of protests, the pro-British march on one side of the town hall here, and the counter protest on the other side of the town hall.”
On social media, people have described the reporting as “appalling” and “egregious,” with some suggesting the corporation isn’t being impartial in its representation of events.
BBC reporter has just described rioters as "a pro-British march" pic.twitter.com/IR8695kGWF
— Ted Booth (@tedgbooth) August 4, 2024
Twitter/X user Rhiannon Cosslett said: “Sorry, but what the hell is ‘pro-British’ anyway?
“This violence doesn’t represent Welsh or Scottish people, anyone English with any kind of mixed heritage, or indeed most civilised white people. This isn’t Britain or Britishness.”
Meanwhile, another user said: “Calling a race riot a ‘pro-British march’ so casually, so unthinkingly, is incredibly telling. This isn’t impartiality.”
Catherine Parish added on Twitter/X: “Utterly appalling framing.”
Idrees Ahmad, associate editor of New Lines Magazine, accused the BBC of “normalising the far-right” while others branded the description of the rioters as “pro-British” as “incorrect and offensive”.
The Alba Party have argued the disorder south of the Border should not be described as “British”, with leader Alex Salmond saying over the weekend that such violence was far less likely to happen in Scotland.
General secretary Chris McEleny has criticised newspaper and TV reports to referring to British riots stating there is “a minute likelihood of violence kicking off in Scotland and it’s therefore completely misleading to call the civil unrest by toxic English racists as anything other than English riots”.
He added that Scotland “should not be complacent” that similar events are possible in the nation but claimed that Scotland “was a different society, which is increasingly diverging from south of the Border".
“Until such time as we do see this behaviour in Scotland, and I honestly do not believe we will, then what we have seen are riots in English towns and cities,” he said.
“It is actually dangerous to see them inaccurately presented as events happening across the UK, because one of the risks we face in Scotland is copycat action of English fascists attempting to stir unrest north of the border.”
It comes after former first minister Humza Yousaf hit out at a BBC presenter who said his description of "far-right race riots" risked "tarring everyone with the same brush".
On Sunday evening Yousaf was invited onto BBC News to give his reaction to the riots which have erupted in England over the weekend.
After describing the riots as "far-right race riots," Luxmy Gopal interrupted to say: “There are a lot of people who have been saying that they want to be able to express their opposition to immigration, even in the form of protest.
“And while they do not want to have anything to do with the violence we’re seeing, they feel that it’s only fair that they should be able to express those views in lawful protest and by tarring everyone with the same brush you’re simply fuelling the problem.”
Yousaf then replied: “What you’re asking me about is violence that we’ve seen, a hotel in Rotherham almost set alight.
“It’s the Nazi salutes we’ve seen on the streets, it’s the attacking of mosques, it’s the battering and beating of black, Asian and Muslim people. The framing and language is exceptionally important.”
There have been growing calls for the UK Parliament to be recalled following the violence which also erupted in Rotherham where a hotel housing asylum seekers was set on fire as rioters tried to force their way in.
Veteran MP Diane Abbott said in a post on social media: “Nationwide anti-immigrant riots on a scale never seen before.
“Threatening life, property and our police force. We need to recall Parliament.”
Prime Minister Keir Starmer (above) is expected to hold an emergency Cobra meeting on Monday following the riots.
A BBC spokesperson said: "The reporter was referring to the fact the march was advertised as a 'pro-British march', but we acknowledge in this instance it should have been more clearly attributed. This was rectified in later reports.”
