Gove orders independent review into Leicester unrest

Communities Secretary Michael Gove has ordered an independent review into last year’s unrest in Leicester after the collapse of an inquiry set up by the city’s elected mayor.

Disturbances last autumn were reported as being between Hindu and Muslim youths following tensions over a cricket match between India and Pakistan.

Labour elected mayor Sir Peter Soulsby asked University of Leicester academic Chris Allen - associate professor in hate studies - to lead an inquiry. He though resigned without it having sat after objections to his role.

Gove has now said the review will be led by independent peer Lord Austin, who as Ian Austin was formerly Labour MP for Dudley North. His review panel members are yet to be named.

This body will seek to identify the underlying causes of the unrest and make  recommendations for improving community relations and preventing any repetition.

The Secretary of State said the September 2022 community tensions “led to a spate of vandalism, assaults, and attacks on places of worship and other properties in Leicester, in some cases highlighting divisions between different groups across the city and beyond”.

He said: “Leicester has a proud history of community cohesion, which makes last year’s disorder all the more shocking and upsetting.

“This review will build a thorough understanding of the specific events that took place and what can be learned from them.”

Sir Peter said: “I welcome the government’s announcement. I hope the review can move forward as swiftly as possible, whilst of course being thorough and given the attention it deserves.

“I would want Leicester and other cities to be able to learn from its findings and to understand what needs to be done to ensure that our community cohesion is never again threatened in this way.”

Lord Austin said communities that live and work together form some of the country’s most vibrant societies, which made the events in Leicester even more worrying as the city had a reputation for good race relations.

He said it would be “important that we listen to people in Leicester to get to the bottom of what happened and why”.

The BBC has reported that Sir Peter voiced concern during this May’s city council elections that he was "deeply troubled" by the extent to which religion was "weaponised" during the campaign.

Professor Allen stood down from leading the original inquiry last autumn, when he said in a statement issued by the city council: “I have reluctantly taken the decision to stand down from the role on the basis that I no longer feel confident that my team and I are able to conduct the review in a way that the ensuing findings would meet the necessary levels of academic scrutiny.

“As someone with a long history of undertaking research that is independent and impartial, the need for academic objectivity and rigour are vitally important. In the current climate, I do not believe that it is possible for me to do so in an impartial way and so it is in the interests of the city and the need to find ways to resolution that I have decided to stand down.’

Prof Allen said “unprecedented levels of hate” had been directed at him but this had not driven his decision.

Mark Smulian