The Record has revealed the web of groups and activists driving an explosion in far-right activity in Scotland. Professor Matthew Feldman, an expert on far-right groups, has warned that Scotland is now seeing a variety of people seeking to stir up a “race war”, with links to far-right organisations in Northern Ireland and across the globe. He said many participants do not see themselves as “far right” despite their goals being firmly targeted at immigrants and their rhetoric often based on conspiracy theories.
Expert warns of 'race war' guiding star
Prof Feldman said: “There are a lot of divisions and subsets but a lot of what we’re seeing with far right groups boils down to race war. That is still their guiding star, even on the far right. They don’t see themselves as supporting the far right and they recoil when they are accused of being Fascists or Nazis.
“Some may talk more about natives and immigrants and some may focus on non-white people with slurs or Jewish people. But they are bonded by similar symbols, like national flags, often the monarchy and in many cases they will be drawn to the same cause.”
Feldman, Emeritus Professor in the modern history of ideas at Teesside University, said many are seduced by the “great replacement theory” - a debunked conspiracy theory about white people being replaced by Muslim “invaders”. He said social media helps people from different parts of the UK find each other using more sanitised language, which can result in the normalisation of far-right goals.
Key groups and activists named
Unite the Clans, formerly Aberdeen Against Illegal Migration, has more than 65,000 Facebook followers and UK-wide amplification enabled by links to other groups. It has united people for big, angry protest events in places like Glasgow and Edinburgh. Early events gave a microphone to John Carr, a member of the fascist Homeland Party, which led to the rampant spreading of the “great replacement theory”. Core members have included Patriotic Alternative member Geoffrey Farquharson and Josh Fernie, another Homeland Party member. The group faced heavy criticism when it launched an anti-immigration protest outside a primary school in Seaton, Aberdeen during school hours. Father and son John Hall Snr and John Hall Jnr have been integral to the group.
Alex Cairnie and the Spartan Child Protection Team have been credited with bringing many vile offenders to justice and acted as a deterrent to others, despite their methods being criticised. Cairnie has courted controversy by conflating his paedophile hunting with race politics, notably when teaming up with Craig Houston to protest about adult English lessons at a school in deprived Dalmarnock, Glasgow. Anti-racism groups accused the pair of “spreading misinformation”. Last September Cairnie praised Tommy Robinson, calling him “a British Patriot and a man that loves his country”. Cairnie has vocally supported influencer Andrew Tate, even after he was charged with multiple rapes.
Craig Houston makes a living by peddling stories on YouTube that blame immigration for Scotland’s woes. He has travelled from town to town, armed with a selfie stick and a drone, to catalogue many conspiracy theories about immigration, “two-tier policing” and alleged “white racism”. He has repeatedly referred to street armies potentially “rising” due to anti-immigration anger. Houston filmed a series of eerie black and white videos that featured grown men in black clothing laying wreaths at locations including the Scottish Parliament and the Daily Record’s office in Glasgow. He is best friends with Sandy Chugg, a notorious Rangers casual who has been jailed several times for football related violence. His activities caught the interest of anti-terror cops, who seized his phone and computer at Edinburgh airport on his return from a recent holiday.
Groups with cross-border links
Patriotic Alternative took a strong grip in Scotland, largely through efforts of Scottish organiser Kenny Smith. They became regulars at protests in Erskine at a hotel used for asylum seekers. A split within PA led to the formation of the Homeland Party, run by Smith. The main public face of PA is now Richard McFarlane, who travels Scotland with a stuffed toy he calls Scooby Doo. McFarlane is regarded as a serious threat to communities due to his willingness to fabricate signs and banners depicting divisive messages like “Stop the Invasion”. The organisation was founded by Mark Collett, a former publicity director for the British National Party.
Voices for Falkirk/Freedom Patriots became a major focal point due to The Cladhan Hotel being used for refugees. A brutal sex attack by a hotel resident enraged the local community and the campaign led to the cessation of the use of the hotel for immigration cases. Reform councillor Claire Mackie-Brown and Julie Reilly, a key figure in Voices For Falkirk, have stood alongside men in masks and members of the ultra right Homeland Party and Patriotic Alternative.
Mark Sinclair (Freedom Dad), a former UVF bank robber, has travelled around Northern Ireland and England to seek out examples of immigration causing local division. His Freedom Dad YouTube channel – emblazoned with a Northern Irish and a Scottish flag – explicitly seeks to connect Scotland and Ulster’s anti-immigration communities. He was part of a travelling band of Loyalists who took part in the July 25 demo at Glasgow Green that saw running battles and 15 arrests. Sinclair has offered a platform to a wide array of far-right icons, including BNP leader Nick Griffin and his ex-deputy Jim Dowson, a regular guest. Griffin has told Sinclair that Northern Ireland is ripe for a citizen army to rise, due to the lessons learned by the Loyalist community during the Troubles. He tells Sinclair that Orange Order marches have provided evidence that an army of fighting men could be called on if the time comes.
Jim Dowson, a veteran far-right activist and frontman of Knights Templar International, has raised a huge sum of cash over many years by peddling tat including white robes, swords and far-right books for his organisation – which has nothing to do with the historic Christian crusaders. Dowson calls his KTI group – of men in little more than fancy dress – a “fighting order”. He admitted his visit to Glasgow on July 25 was his first in 20 years. He used the occasion to shoot videos that played to a US audience, telling them how Glasgow was “teeming with Africans”. Dowson asked US donors to aid the people in the Scottish “projects”. On the visit, Dowson handed out military style gear to vigilante groups, including the Scots Active group, who accepted stab vests and bodycams to deal with threats that might emerge as they patrol Glasgow’s streets.
Scots Active, along with the North to South group, have trawled the streets looking for women to “save” from immigrants. Despite filming everything for TikTok, the videos contain more evidence of black people being harassed than anyone being saved from violence. Scots Active leader Darren Docherty claims to be anti-racist, but a Record investigation revealed him to be a moderator of a sinister WhatsApp group under the banner ‘Get These C**** Out!’. They clashed with cops, targeted ethnic minorities, and made Nazi salutes at a Glasgow demo on June 13.
