Starmer needs to get a grip on the riots

Hundreds of angry protestors have attacked a hotel in South Yorkshire that has been used to house migrants and asylum seekers. Videos posted on social media show the police retreating under a hail of objects thrown by anti-immigration protesters outside the Holiday Inn Express in Rotherham.

The scenes are some of the worst so far as unrest across Britain enters its fifth day, after three young girls were stabbed to death in Southport on Monday. The Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, in responding to the events in Rotherham, vowed ‘to bring these thugs to justice as quickly as possible’.

There are pictures of protestors hurling pieces of wood and chairs at riot police, while setting bins and furniture alight. The rioters are seen trying to smash the windows of the hotel before attempting to storm the building. The group, some clad in balaclavas, and others wearing Union Jack masks and draped in the St George flag, launch themselves at police officers lined up to protect the hotel and the people inside.