Michael Gove warns Angela Rayner over riot claims

Michael Gove warns Angela Rayner over riot claims
Credit: (Jordan Pettitt/PA) PA Archive

UK (Parliament Politics Magazine) – Michael Gove says deputy PM Angela Rayner made a “big mistake” with riot warning, claiming such remarks risk inciting unrest and damaging public trust.

As reported by The Independent, a former Tory cabinet minister has criticised Angela Rayner’s warning about possible summer unrest, saying it may “tacitly encourage” riots.

Mr Gove, Ms Rayner’s predecessor as communities secretary, said history shows that raising alarm about unrest can make it more likely to happen.

His comments follow the Deputy Prime Minister’s blunt warning to Cabinet on July 22, where she linked economic struggles and immigration to rising unrest. She urged ministers to confront public concerns over social change and falling living standards.

What did Michael Gove say about Labour’s warning on riots?

Michael Gove, now serving as editor of The Spectator, previously held senior roles during key periods of civil unrest, including managing riot-related crises.

He played a central role in Cameron’s cabinet during the 2011 London riots, serving as education secretary after previously overseeing the courts as justice secretary.

During an interview he said,

“I think this is a mistake on Labour, to brief this out, I think it is a big mistake, it reminds me of what happened in the 1970s when [former US president] Jimmy Carter when America was going through difficult times said ‘this country is in the grip of a malaise.’”

Mr Gove stated,

“You do not, if you are the government, accentuate the negative in this way and you certainly don’t suggest to people that violence might be about to break out in this way.”

When questioned about Reform UK leader Nigel Farage’s comments that appeared to show support for the Epping protesters, he responded,

“I think it is understandable why Nigel Farage says it, but I don’t believe that anyone should be doing anything to anticipate or to seek to in any way say this is inevitable.”

Mr Gove said,

“Because that either tacitly encourages or makes the government seem at the mercy of events. Of course, you deal with migration, of course, the government can and should do more to show that people are being deported and asylum seekers are being processed effectively.”

He added,

“But the key rule in politics is show, don’t tell. You give hope, you do not double down on despair.”

What did Angela Rayner warn about rising unrest in the UK?

Angela Rayner has warned Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer that Britain could see a repeat of last summer’s riots if the “government shows it can address people’s concerns.”

During a tense cabinet session before the summer recess, Ms Rayner pointed to economic strain, rising immigration, digital overexposure, and weakening trust in institutions as key forces reshaping society.

She told ministers it was

“incumbent on the government to acknowledge the real concerns people have and to deliver improvements to people’s lives in their communities,”

Warning of a possible repeat of the unrest that followed the Southport killings.

Ms Rayner told fellow ministers that

“while Britain was a successful multi-ethnic, multi-faith country, the government had to show it had a plan to address people’s concerns and provide opportunities for everyone to flourish.”

What did the PM’s spokesperson say about Rayner’s riot warning?

The prime minister’s official spokesperson stated he was

“focused on taking action to ensure that we address people’s concerns, people’s very legitimate concerns”.

They added,

“And we start by acknowledging that those concerns are legitimate, and we start by dealing with the underlying causes of those concerns.”

Beth Malcolm

Beth Malcolm is Scottish based Journalist at Heriot-Watt University studying French and British Sign Language. She is originally from the north west of England but is living in Edinburgh to complete her studies.