Southport trial: Hannah Rose speaks with BBC5 Live about protecting children from online violence

Hannah Rose, Hate and Extremism Analyst at ISD, discussed the UK government’s role in protecting children from the threat of violence online with BBC Radio 5 Live’s Nicky Campbell. Following Axel Rudakubana’s guilty plea in the 2024 Southport stabbing of three young girls, Hannah pointed out that the government’s “current apparatus” doesn’t address the present threat: “What has become clear over the years is the number of children specifically involved in online forms of violent extremism and terrorism has risen.” 

When discussing the UK’s PREVENT program, Hannah explains that “over the years [the program] has struggled to adapt to this changing threat,” not just ideology-based but in the nature of how individuals engage with this content.  

“What we need to do is connect these different parts of government [counterterrorism, Online Safety Act, law enforcement agencies, etc] that currently look at different forms of extreme harm and how that is mobilised and make sure they’re all coming together in one large cross-government strategy.” 

You can listen to the full interview on our YouTube channel.