Political correspondent, Scotland
Scotland News
It is “understandable” that people are protesting outside of hotels housing asylum seekers, the leader of the Scottish Conservatives has said.
Russell Findlay insisted that “lawful” demonstrations were “entirely reasonable”.
Anti-immigration protests have been held in Perth, Aberdeenshire and Falkirk this month, with officials raising fears that the events could turn violent.
Campaign group Stand up to Racism Scotland accused Findlay of scapegoating refugees.
The Scottish Tory leader, speaking to journalists after a speech in Glasgow, raised the case of Sadeq Nikzad, an asylum seeker from Afghanistan who was jailed for nine years in June for raping a 15-year-old girl in Falkirk in 2023.
Findlay told Scotland News: “It’s understandable in those circumstances why communities would question the entire integrity and safety of the immigration system.
“And I think as long as that’s being done lawfully and respectfully that is entirely right and they have the right to protest.”
He said any unlawful activity “should be dealt with robustly by the police and the courts”.
Findlay told reporters that the UK needed to attract “good quality immigration” and that the system should be “fair”.
But Stand up to Racism Scotland said the protests were designed to “intimidate people who have fled war, poverty or prosecution”.
A spokesperson said: “We condemn Findlay’s attempts to point the blame for the problems affecting working-class people today away from those responsible, and instead to scapegoat migrants and refugees.”
Protests have been held outside hotels across the UK in recent months, following a wave of violence directed towards asylum seekers in England last summer.
Council leaders in Perth have warned the events could turn violent and said many protesters had been “bussed in” from elsewhere.
Council officials also accused some protesters of spreading misinformation about people in the asylum system.
At a demonstration outside a former hotel in Falkirk, at least one person performed a Nazi salute while another carried a banner that said “Kill ‘Em All, Let God Sort ‘Em Out”.
More demonstrations are planned in Scotland in the coming weeks, including a local group in Falkirk which plans to line the streets with Saltire flags.
This mimics the recent flying of St George’s flags and union jacks on England’s streets.
As well as the Scottish events, demonstrations were held in several parts of England, as well as in Mold in Wales and County Antrim in Northern Ireland.
The has identified far-right activists at some of the protests, which have been promoted on social media under red, white and blue banner text with slogans such as “Protect Our Community”, “Safety of Women and Children Before Foreigners” and “All Patriots Welcome”.
The UK government has vowed to overhaul of the asylum appeals system in a bid to cut the number of migrants staying in hotels while they await a ruling.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said she would end “unacceptable delays”, with a new body, staffed by independent adjudicators, to be established.
