Priti Patel’s ‘laughable’ claims of two-tier policing putting officers at risks

The former head of UK counter-terrorism has accused Priti Patel of putting officers at risk after the Tory leadership hopeful made “divisive” comments about two-tier policing.

Since far-right riots erupted across England and Northern Ireland last week, there have been false claims on social media that police are treating white people taking part in the disorder more harshly than minority groups.

In an interview with the Times on Saturday, Patel said there “[seems] to be a perception of two-tier policing”. She added: “We’ve seen the police being absent in some areas, and I think it’s right that the government should be held to account.”

Related: More than 700 arrests made and 302 people charged over riots in England

Neil Basu, the former head of UK counter-terrorism, called Patel’s comments “divisive” and said the idea behind two-tier policing was “laughable”.

Speaking to BBC’s Today programme on Saturday, he said: “Here goes Priti Patel, proving the point that it is impossible for politicians to have a positive cross-party narrative on an issue. That is a very divisive comment and I’ll echo what my friend commissioner Mark Rowley said earlier on in the week , two-tier policing is absolute nonsense.

“We work without fear or favour to the law and Priti knows that, I worked with her every day for two and a half years on counter-terrorism. And if you look like me, if you happen to be Black or Asian in this country, the idea that there’s some form of two-tier policing where, if you’re white, working class, you get a raw deal from the police, it’s, quite frankly, a little bit laughable after 200 years of being overpoliced and underprotected,” he said.

He said her comments would put police officers at risk. “To hear politicians talk about two-tier policing, and she recognises that she’s making a political soundbite otherwise she wouldn’t talk about it being a perception rather than a reality. But you want to start putting that message out. You are putting every one of my former colleagues at risk. This is not a time to be putting more pressure on them with comments like that.”

On Monday, Nigel Farage claimed that “ever since the soft policing of the Black Lives Matter protests, the impression of two-tier policing has become widespread”. On Tuesday, Elon Musk called the prime minister “two-tier Keir”.

While scenes of far-right rioters have calmed in recent days, police are still on high alert.

Suspected rioters were continuing to appear in court on Saturday, while police forces were braced for further protests.

A total of 6,000 riot officers have been deployed across the UK this weekend. Police have also ramped up their pursuit of online influencers “responsible for spreading hate and inciting violence on a large scale”.

The National Police Chiefs’ Council announced that specialist officers from across the country were investigating hundreds of leads, in cooperation with counter-terrorism police.

The chief constable, Chris Haward, the Council’s lead for serious and organised crime, said: “Large crowds and gatherings didn’t mobilise spontaneously. It was the result of dozens of so-called influencers, exploiting the outpouring of grief from the tragic loss of three young girls in Southport. They knowingly spread misinformation, stoked the flames of hatred and division and incited violence from the comfort of their own homes – causing chaos on other people’s doorsteps.

“Online crimes have real world consequences and you will be dealt with in the same way as those physically present and inflicting the violence.”

Hundreds of anti-racism demonstrators gathered at rallies in Edinburgh and Glasgow on Saturday. And about 15,000 people took part in an anti-racism rally in Belfast, after a week of unrest and disorder in the city .

A “significant police operation” was planned for Yeovil, Somerset, over the weekend, with authorisation given for additional powers to ensure peaceful protests, while Merseyside police have been given enhanced powers to stop and search individuals in Liverpool city centre.