UofG Centre for Public Policy

18 September 2025: As far-right demonstrations continue across the UK, Dr Judith Sijstermans, University of Aberdeen, looks at the evolving picture of far-right activism in Scotland and the locally-rooted activity and networks that underpin it.

Blog by Dr Judith Sijstermans, University of Aberdeen

In the last month, Scotland has witnessed its most well-attended far right protests in years, leading to a flurry of attention on the issue of migration and the politics of those who oppose it. These protests represent a break from the norm in Scotland, where far right protests have been rarer than in England, and both the public and politicians have tended to view migration and migrants more positively. On the other hand, scholars have long noted that racism and xenophobia in Scotland have been ‘under-articulated and unacknowledged’. On the one hand, extensive coverage of the recent protests provides a corrective to this lack of attention. On the other hand, hyper-focus on these protests means that we are telling only a partial story. Building on my ongoing research, I detail how these protests actually build on a broad base of far-right activity, and argue that tracing this context is the key to understanding the Scottish far right.

The term ‘far right’ is often perceived as pejorative but, in my research, it functions as an umbrella term to include the populist radical right (like Reform UK) and extreme right (like Patriotic Alternative). Both types of groups share a strong opposition to migration and promote discourses that “other” a range of groups, including migrants, people of colour, trans people, and Jewish people. Protests at asylum seeker hotels exemplify this: calls to halt or slow down migration were central but numerous signs also focused on race, in particular a defence of a ‘white Scotland’.  

My ongoing research analyses far right social media posts on Instagram, Facebook, X, and Telegram from July 2024 to August 2025. Through these platforms, I identify in-person activism in Scotland. The emerging data, presented below, is a systematic but not exhaustive list of far-right activity in Scotland.

Table One shows that protests are actually less frequent than campaigning, and complemented by a wider array of meetings, community service and social gatherings. My recent comparative work shows that local activities can result in feelings of efficaciousness, community and satisfaction that motivate far right supporters to become and stay active. Scholars have shown in other contexts that local political party activities can increase the legitimacy of often stigmatised far right organisations and ideas.

Type of Activity	Number of observed activities	Description
Campaigning	102	leafletting, canvassing, for ex.
Protest	31
Organisational	28	branch meetings, for ex.
Social	12	pub lunches, for ex.
Community Service	8	litter picking, for ex.
Street posting	8	stickering, graffiti, flyposting, for ex.
Total	189

Table 1. Observed far right activities in Scotland, by type (25 July 2024– 29 August 2025).

Who, then, organises these activities? Table Two provides an overview of the main far right groups active in Scotland over the last year. Reform UK and the Scottish Family Party account for most activity, while the Homeland Party emerged as the most active fringe group, particularly in the Northeast.

Organisation	Number of Observed Activities
Reform UK	70
Scottish Family Party	46
Homeland Party	36
Other	10
A Force for Good	7
British Democrats	5
British National Socialist Movement, football casuals, Patriotic Alternative	4 (each)
Britain First	3
UKIP	1
Total	189

Table 2. Far right organisations active in Scotland, July 2024–August 2025.

At the recent protests, this diversity of actors has been on display. Organisers from Reform, Homeland, and Patriotic Alternative gave speeches and protesters included both local people and members of far right organisations who travelled from well beyond the local area. In other words, the protests were not isolated events. They continue ongoing patterns of activism. Chart 1 illustrates the scope of far right activism since July 2024. In this context, the protests are neither anomalous nor surprising.

Chart 1. Number of activities per month (25 July 2024 – 29 August 2025).

Taking this broader perspective reveals shifts in ideological messaging and framing over time. Tracing Scottish far right activism over the last year shows that many groups active in this space defend and promote British unionism. Most originated in England - establishing leaders and organisational structures there - before extending more limited activity into Scotland (for example, Reform UK, Patriotic Alternative, Britain First, and the British Democrats). As such, these groups have largely drawn on symbols of the UK, including the union flag.

The recent protests and the flag-hanging that followed point to something new. The prominence of saltires over union flags suggests a potential shift in far right imagery. The growing visibility of, and attention to, far-right politics in Scotland encourage these groups to develop their own, specific vision of the Scottish nation that goes beyond being an extension of English groups. This vision of ‘Scottishness’ directly challenges Scottish politicians’ longstanding consensus on multiculturalism. Instead, this emerging far right understanding of Scottishness defines who is, and can be, Scottish in ways that exclude migrants and people of colour, and pushes aside the voices of other groups, particularly trans people.

Recent protests are not an aberration. They are the product and visible example of wider locally rooted networks, mobilised by both more mainstream populist radical right and more extreme right groups. As these networks deepen and their visibility increases, far right activists and organisations in Scotland may begin to brand themselves and their message in more distinctly Scottish terms.

Author

Dr Judith Sijstermans is a Lecturer in Politics at the University of Aberdeen. Her research focuses on nationalist politics, including both movements for independence and those on the far right. She is particularly interested in how political parties and movements mobilise activists, as well as the motivations that underpin nationalist mobilisation.

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First published: 18 September 2025