Prime Minister KEIR STARMER has vowed "swift criminal sanctions" against anti-immigrant riots in several cities that have seen widespread damage and nearly 400 arrests.

The Prime Minister convened ministers and police chiefs to discuss the unrest that broke out last Tuesday in Southport, northwest England, following a stabbing spree in which three children were killed.

He said a "standing army" of specially-trained police was ready to be deployed to support local forces where any further riots break out.

He also said that social media companies should do more to stop inflammatory content online. 

He emphasized that "criminal law applies online as well as offline" and said online agitators will be met with "the full force of the law."