Police remain on “high alert” for further violence on the streets this weekend, Keir Starmer has said.
The Prime Minister said forces across the country are braced for more riots but said “swift justice” handed out by the courts was deterring far-right thugs.
It comes as hundreds of rioters have been warned by police “we are just getting started” as arrests are expected to go on for months. Police chiefs said “hundreds more suspects” have been identified, with detectives using facial recognition to help them track down suspects.
Ministers are hoping that ramped up police numbers and hefty prison sentences handed to rioters will deter further unrest. On a visit to Scotland Yard, in London, Mr Starmer said: “My message to the police and all of those that are charged with responding to disorder is maintain that high alert.
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“I’m absolutely convinced that having the police officers in place these last few days, and the swift justice that has been dispensed in our courts have had a real impact. But we have to stay on high alert going into this weekend because we absolutely have to make sure that our communities are safe and secure and feel safe and secure.”
Detectives and prosecutors are in “overdrive” and “working round the clock” – building their cases against rioters and those “spreading online hate”. So far 595 arrests have been made and around 150 people charged in connection with violent disorder and anti-social behaviour.
They said facial recognition has helped them find more suspects to track down. They have also scoured thousands of hours of CCTV, drone footage, body worn video (BMV) and online content.
More custody cells and prison places are waiting for those responsible for “serious disorder”.
Chief Constable Gavin Stephens, National Police Chiefs’ Council chair said: “We are working hard to bring this disorder to an end, but arrests are just getting started – and we have already made hundreds. We won’t stop until communities get the justice they deserve after suffering such violence and the spreading of online hate.”
Threats of more than 100 gatherings on Wednesday failed to materialise as peaceful crowds turned out in their thousands to face down hate mobs.
Chief Constable Stephens said while the previous two nights had been a “welcome break from the appalling scenes of the last week” they are “by no means complacent” with 6,000 officers on standby.
Potential violence triggered by the start of the football season is “added into the mix” of plans for handling future disorder, Mr Starmer said. He added: “I think there were a lot of things in the mix this weekend but of course, whatever the challenge, we have to rise to it.
“That’s why I’ve had Cobra meetings, that’s why I’ve been talking to the police today about their plans for the weekend. Yes, football is added into the mix, there are other things in the mix, but our focus has to be absolutely solely on the safety and security of our communities, and that’s exactly where it is.”
Minister Nick Thomas-Symonds also urged counter-protesters to stay home to ease the burden on the police after Home Secretary Yvette Cooper told MPs not to encourage demonstrations.
He said: “I think what the Home Secretary is entirely right about, and I would echo having spoken to police officers yesterday about the strain that they are under, the hours that they are working, I certainly don’t think it helps for politicians to be encouraging even more people out on our streets.”