Islamists and the far-left an 'UNHOLY ALLIANCE' warns extremism tsar: 'It ought to worry us!'

The measures, which include making protest organisers pay towards policing and a review of undercover surveillance of activist groups, come as part of a sprawling 292-page report on political violence, as commissioned by Boris Johnson's Government in late 2020.

The report makes no fewer than 41 recommendations - which he urged the Government to "move as quickly as possible on as many... as possible".

In it, the public are warned of the threat of the "extreme left", which, despite not "routinely employing violent methods", Lord Walney said, "systematically seek to undermine faith in our parliamentary democracy and the rule of law".

At a press conference and Q&A on Tuesday, Lord Walney said: "Noble causes such as the battle against climate change have been hijacked by extremist groups, determined to bypass democratic norms and cause maximum destruction to society.

"Meanwhile, hostile states are actively seeking to sow division in our communities by stoking hatred on our streets."

The political violence and disruption adviser said that while compiling the review, he "found a serious blind spot in the state's understanding of the extreme left".

Through their actions, he said, "far-left activists in an unholy alliance with Islamists [were] looking to coerce and short-circuit our democracy rather than shaping the future through engaging with it.

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Lord Walney accused protesters of "fuelling anti-Semitism", warned that the "future path of radicalisation if we do not reset now should alarm us all", and said: "I want my report to be a wake-up call to the political establishment on the centre and left."

The public "largely abhor" protest groups' "guerrilla tactics", he said, adding that Gaza marches' leaderships' "far-left and Islamist links... ought to worry us".

He also slammed "militant" groups like Just Stop Oil and Palestine Action, which he said "seized on criminal sabotage and illegal disruption as their method of forcing their way into the conversation".

Lord Walney decried what he said was an "explosion of antisemitism", and called on "the political world to catch up with the real world and view extreme protest movements as an unacceptable threat to our democracy, not an extension of it".

When asked by GB News what the effects of putting all his proposed measures into place would look like, Lord Walney said: "I think the polling that I commissioned for this review sends a really strong message that the public absolutely believe in the right to protest, but they do not want to have their lives disrupted, and do not accept criminal tactics and sabotage and extreme disruption.

"I think, in totality, my recommendations are about us changing our attitude, for this to be a reset moment for us as a country - that actually, we are going to be much clearer about championing our democratic values and understanding the ways in which they can be put under threat by extreme protest - but we're going to find a way to actually support and enable people's right to protest peacefully.

"I hope that GB News viewers and the public in general will actually consider much of this stuff - once they all digest it - and will actually see this as largely an obvious package of measures to strengthen our system."

Lord Walney had come under fire before the publication of the report because his interests - as declared on the House of Lords register - include jobs for companies that also act for energy firms - which he has denied undermine its credibility.

Just Stop Oil said it did not recognise the legitimacy of the report because of the links, while Extinction Rebellion (XR) called it "shameful" that he had been asked to write the report.

An XR spokesman said: "We are a movement committed to non-violence. We train everyone acting in the name of Extinction Rebellion in non-violence. We have stewards to manage crowds responsibly. We have a policy for how to clear an area for emergency services.

"If the government can come for a group that works this hard at peaceful protest, they can come for anyone."

Home Secretary James Cleverly has said he would carefully consider Lord Walney's recommendations.

He said: "The right to protest is a vital part of democracy, but there is absolutely no place for criminality or harassment on our streets. Too often, we have seen vile displays of hate crime and aggressive tactics used by so-called protesters.

"Lord Walney's report raises important questions on the cumulative impact of disruptive and extremist activity on our communities. I thank Lord Walney and his team for this extensive and compelling report."

Rishi Sunak, when asked about the report, said: "Extremism has no place in our society. Threatening or intimidating behaviour that disrupts the lives of ordinary hardworking people isn’t acceptable," adding that it was "not the British way".