Swinney raises alarm over summer of far-right activity in Glasgow

First Minister John Swinney has expressed deep concern about community cohesion in Glasgow following a series of far-right and anti-migrant demonstrations that he said placed people's safety at risk.

Speaking to the Press Association, Swinney said public safety was a fundamental priority for his administration. Some conduct during the protests had crossed a clear line.

Around 1,700 people took part in demonstrations in Glasgow at the end of July, according to The National.

The protests formed part of a broader surge in far-right activity across Scotland this summer, which also included an Islamophobic stabbing incident in Edinburgh and reports of masked individuals assaulting people on the basis of their appearance.

A summer of disorder across Scotland

The National reported that the summer's unrest featured events described by one expert as bearing echoes of early fascist movements, including formations staged outside newspaper offices and the Scottish Parliament.

A man was subsequently charged in connection with the Edinburgh stabbing on terrorism-related grounds. The charges were serious.

Swinney acknowledged there are multiple issues at play in Glasgow. He stressed the importance of living in a society where peaceful protest is possible, but said that right must not extend to behaviour that endangers others.

What occurred this summer, he said, sometimes fell into that latter category.

Swinney's assessment of Glasgow's reputation

Despite his concerns, the First Minister was careful to set the disorder against a wider picture of the city.

He pointed to Glasgow's hosting of the Commonwealth Games this summer as evidence of a city that had welcomed visitors from around the world with confidence and goodwill. Glasgow delivered.

Swinney said the whole of the summer, taken together, showed Glasgow had much to be proud of. He added that the Scottish Government intended to work with the city to support and strengthen its reputation.

The Games and the community response to far-right activity, he suggested, both illustrated the values Glasgow as a whole sought to uphold.

BBC documentary draws further scrutiny

Glasgow's public image has faced pressure from another direction this summer.

A BBC documentary examining violence and disorder in the city attracted criticism after a Glasgow historian took issue with what they described as a portrayal of the city as a, in their words, backwater of drunks, according to The National. The description stung.

That criticism added to a period in which Glasgow's standing has been subject to considerable external commentary, both positive and negative.

Swinney, whose government has faced its own pressures this year Swinney rules out inquiry into bullying allegations against Deputy First Minister, did not address the documentary directly but emphasised the strengths he believed the city had demonstrated.

The First Minister said the Scottish Government's intention was to enhance Glasgow's reputation, not merely defend it, and that the achievements of the summer provided a firm basis for doing so.

This report is based on a single source, thenational.scot, and has not been independently verified.