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You mean the “Unite the Kingdom Rally”?
There’s a special kind of irony in that!
“We’re here in our millions!”
Really? There were more inside Wembley Stadium watching the Cup Final.
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If by “two-tier justice” people mean the rich, powerful and well-connected often seem to get softer landings than ordinary people, then yes, I’d agree there’s a serious problem. Access to better lawyers, influence, money and status absolutely affects outcomes far too often.
And if people are talking about grooming gangs, then yes, there were grotesque failures there too. Victims were ignored, authorities looked the other way, and too many people appeared more concerned about reputational damage, community tensions, or being accused of racism than they were about protecting vulnerable girls. That should shame everyone involved.
No one in their right mind would condone that. No one serious should excuse it, minimise it, or pretend it didn’t happen.
But acknowledging those failures doesn’t mean we have to accept every far-right narrative built around them. There is a huge difference between saying “the police, councils, social services and courts failed victims and must be held accountable” and saying “therefore whole communities are suspect and far-right marches are justified.”
That is where these marches become so poisonous. They often take real scandals, real anger and real institutional failure, then twist them into something broader and uglier. The victims become props in a grievance campaign, rather than people who deserved protection, justice and dignity.
A fair justice system should apply the same standards to everyone. Grooming gangs, violent mobs, corrupt officials, racist thugs, political extremists, abusive men, negligent authorities, whoever breaks the law or fails in their duty should face consequences. Left, right, Muslim, Christian, atheist, black, white, it should make no difference.
So yes, let’s talk honestly about grooming gangs. Let’s talk about institutional cowardice, policing failures, safeguarding failures, sentencing, and the uncomfortable facts people avoided for too long. But let’s not pretend marching through the streets under banners of resentment, intimidation and anti-Muslim hostility is the same thing as demanding justice.
Real patriotism isn’t demanding special treatment for your own side. It is wanting the rules applied fairly, even when the facts are uncomfortable and even when the people being punished are people you might normally sympathise with.
So yes, let’s talk about fairness in justice. But let’s not let “two-tier justice” become a slogan that excuses one mob by pointing at the failures around another. Hate does not become acceptable because it is attached to a legitimate grievance.
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I have often thought that there is a need for a liberal patriotism because why care for the country and want things to improve if you don’t care about the country? It will make anyone suspicious of your motives if you display a disdain for patriotism, so those who aren’t fully on your side will be put off without it. However, it has to be married with a respect for people liking representations of their country, like the flag. I don’t think it is convincing enough to others that true patriotism should be talking about having a society that looks after all; it needs to have some pride in the country and less sneering at people for ‘flag shagging’ or whatever.
I am not calling for flags at every school or anything like that, but less sneering at those that do would be better in convincing others that liberals or the left don’t have disdain for pride in the UK, and would make people less vulnerable to turning a blind eye to radical voices on the right presenting their bigoted ideas as just about showing pride in the country.
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I’ve represented both England and Great Britain at endurance events across Europe, and I can tell you I’ve never felt anything but pride wearing the official kit. The pride I felt wasn’t about hating anyone else; it was about representing values I genuinely associate with the best of this country: fairness, decency, courage, tolerance, humour, respect for others, standing up for the vulnerable, playing by the rules, and treating people as individuals rather than as stereotypes.
That to me, is patriotism. Not shouting at minorities. Not turning victims into political props. Not pretending that waving a flag gives you permission to intimidate people. Real British values should mean equal justice, not selective outrage. They should mean protecting victims, punishing offenders, and refusing to let extremists, whether far right or far left, hijack legitimate anger for their own agenda.
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