Rob Rooney, Cornwall Socialist Party
A Cornwall-wide mobilisation against the far right hoping to terrorise asylum seekers in Newquay stood firm on 25 February. Patriotic Alternative, a far-right racist group, had been leafleting in Newquay and using social media to whip up tensions against asylum seekers housed in a local hotel. They were outnumbered by a 300-strong counter-protest occupying the footpath outside the hotel. Socialist Party members had material pointing out why this situation has developed and who is responsible – a Tory government and the Tory-run Cornwall Council who have destroyed Cornwall’s infrastructure, cutting £380 million from the budget over ten years. We raised the need for the trade unions to take the threat of the far right gaining support seriously and to fight for jobs, homes and services, and against racism.
