Ministers have appealed for calm after violent clashes between protesters and police near where student Henry Nowak was stabbed to death.
The unrest has followed outcry over the police response to the murder, after the student’s killer claimed he had been the victim of a racial attack while the injured Nowak was handcuffed by police as he lay dying.
The National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) announced it would review anti-racism guidance – which advises police to treat ethnic minorities differently to get them better outcomes – that some have blamed for the actions of the officers who arrested Nowak.
Policing minister Sarah Jones said she understood the anger the case had caused, but urged people not to “overreact”, adding Nowak’s family did not want his murder to stir up hostility or division.
“We are urging that people take the anger that they feel, which I understand, but let’s allow justice to do its course, and let’s not overreact, which indeed is what the family are asking us to do as well,” she told Times Radio.
Ms Jones defended the police’s Race Action Plan, although ministers have acknowledged that wording in a police commitment document alongside it is “clumsy”.
She said “everyone must be equal under the law and we must ensure that is the case” but “we can’t shy away from what are historic and legitimate concerns about racism within police forces”.
NPCC chair Gavin Stephens said: “We are listening to legitimate concerns about how some of these commitments are worded or phrased, and where needed we can and will make changes, but this should not detract from the intent, which is to improve the quality of policing.”
The case has been seized on by politicians including Nigel Farage, political activist Tommy Robinson and tech billionaire Elon Musk.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said “pernicious identity politics” had seen the country “going backwards”. She criticised Mr Farage on Thursday for “taking sides”, adding: “We need to stop this racialising of our society”.
In a Daily Mail article, she added there was a need to “sweep out a lot of the historic, incoherent nonsense that has been brought in under the guise of anti-racism”.
Mr Farage said Nowak was “treated in a way that meant an accusation of a racial slur was treated more seriously than an act of murder” and said people should react with “pure cold rage”.
Two people were arrested for assaulting police and possession of a weapon after hundreds gathered outside Southampton Central Police Station on Tuesday where Tommy Robinson – real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon – and actor and campaigner Laurence Fox were among those who spoke to the crowd.
Calling for people to come out and protest against Hampshire Police, Mr Robinson said in a ranting video on X that Nowak had been killed in a “racial murder”, saying: “Your police officers have done nothing because he was White”.
He claimed that police would not have ignored Nowak’s pleas “if he was non-White” and said that White people were under attack.
At the protest outside Southampton police station, Mr Robinson told hundreds of people that the police officers involved should be prosecuted and called for the family of the killer Vickrum Digwa to be moved out of Southampton.
Violent scenes broke out after a large group walked across town to the area of Portswood. Demonstrators chanted “Henry, Henry” as the line of police were pelted with bricks.
Chairs, cans and flares were thrown at police in riot gear, eventually forcing officers and three police vans back from the line they had been holding.
Some of those in attendance were not from the local area, with one attendee posting on Facebook that he was travelling for five hours with a friend to get to Southampton for the riot.
Home secretary Shabana Mahmood said the scenes were “completely unacceptable” and accused the demonstrators of “hijacking this tragedy to stir up violence and disorder” .
Nowak’s killer, 23-year-old Digwa, told police attending the scene of the stabbing in Southampton on 3 December 2025 that he had been the victim of a racist attack.
In body-worn camera footage from the incident, a handcuffed Nowak can be heard repeatedly saying: “I’ve been stabbed”, to which an officer replies: “Don’t think you have, mate.”
Ms Mahmood said: “The Nowak family made a powerful call to us all yesterday to not let Henry’s death be used to create further division, hatred or tension.
“There can be no justification for hijacking this tragedy to stir up violence and disorder. Those responsible can expect to face the full force of the law.
“I thank the police who have tonight shown great bravery and calm in the face of disgraceful violence directed at them.”
Digwa was given a life sentence with a minimum of 21 years in prison for stabbing Nowak with a ceremonial knife with a 21cm blade prosecutors said was a kirpan, which he carried as part of his Sikh religion.
He had previously been investigated by police in 2023 on suspicion of stealing ceremonial blades from a Sikh temple in Southampton but no further action was taken.
The police watchdog is expected to report on the case within the next three months.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said investigators are examining a large amount of body-worn video as well as material presented during Digwa’s trial.
Hampshire Police confirmed that one of the officers involved in the case has resigned, while the other three are still serving.
All of them are being treated as witnesses.
