Right wing extremist threat growing in Birmingham

Detective Chief Superintendent Matt Ward has warned that counter terrorism police in the West Midlands are facing an increasing threat of right wing extremists in the region.

In an interview with Sky News, the head of West Midlands Counter Terrorism Unit said that officers from the specialist unit are now spending 20 per cent of their time on thwarting plots hatched by far right activists, with 80 per cent of their work still spent on fighting Islamist threats.

As part of a feature on frontline officers in the unit, Ward said that combating the ‘frenzy of hatred’ from far-right extremists is now ‘the fastest growing part of his officers' jobs, saying that it is the one area where he has seen more activity taking place over the last two years.

A recent prominent case involving the region's counter terrorism officers involved six neo-Nazis jailed for being members of the banned group National Action, who were trying to start a race war in the UK by spreading extreme right wing ideology.

Birmingham Airport is one location where counter terrorism officers are based 24/7 monitoring the 13 million passengers who use it every year. In May last year, British Transport Police opened its first regional counter terrorism unit at Birmingham New Street station, enabling police to respond more quickly to incidents and provide additional reassurance to passengers and rail staff.