Home secretary Yvette Cooper has pledged to crack down on people “pushing harmful and hateful beliefs” and “kickstart” a new approach to clamp down on extremism following the riots that erupted across the UK earlier this month. 

The Home Office commissioned a “rapid sprint” to launch its new project, which will seek to provide analysis and recommendations on how to “tackle the threat posed by extremist ideologies”.

The scheme will inform a new government counter-terrorism strategy to respond to changing trends in extremism across the country.

The Home Office said it will look at the rise of Islamist and far-right extremism in the UK, along with wider ideological trends, such as extreme misogyny or sentiments that fall into broader categories like fixation on violence.

Ms Cooper told The Telegraph: “For too long, governments have failed to address the rise in extremism, both online and on our streets, and we’ve seen the number of young people radicalised online grow.

“Hateful incitement of all kinds fractures and frays the very fabric of our communities and our democracy.”

She added: “Action against extremism has been badly hollowed out in recent years, just when it should have been needed most.

“That’s why I have directed the Home Office to conduct a rapid analytical sprint on extremism, to map and monitor extremist trends, to understand the evidence about what works to disrupt and divert people away from extremist views, and to identify any gaps in existing policy which need to be addressed to crack down on those pushing harmful and hateful beliefs and violence.

“That work will underpin a new strategic approach to countering extremism from government, working closely with communities to build consensus and impetus for our plans.”