In his column this month, Councillor Mark Irvine looks at the terrible scenes in recent weeks as rioters, encouraged by social media, are brought to justice.

​I don’t usually talk about national issues but is hard not to be both angered and saddened by the events of the past two weeks.

As I write this column, the UK has been witnessing some terrible scenes of rioting and violence. Supposedly they have been triggered by the tragic events in Southport on July 29.

It is utterly disgraceful that the ‘noise’ from the riots and violence have drowned out the terrible tragedy that occurred and the devastating loss of life.

Three young children were brutally murdered, and those who tried to protect them were themselves seriously wounded in the attack. My thoughts are with those families and the wider community who must still feel numb.

To then see a heartbreaking community vigil for the dead girls being ‘hijacked’ by violent thugs, with their own agenda, was sickening.

Until the full details of the attack in Southport are known we have no idea what the motivation of the alleged attacker was. Yet within hours, social media was awash with misinformation and speculation, and the flames were being fanned around issues of race and immigration.

Where is our humanity and compassion? I despair sometimes.

I fully support the right to peaceful protest, and that should never be taken away. But there can be no justification for violence, looting, rioting and criminal damage. I hope that those caught breaking the law (some even recorded on their own cameras!) are dealt with swiftly and appropriately.

On a similar thought process I wondered how much focus the prosecutions from the rioting will draw attention to the perils of social media?

It’s of great concern, and some irony, that Elon Musk should want to point out that we are heading towards ‘civil war’ in the UK. This from a prominent businessman in a country, the USA, that has seen violence on its streets repeatedly over the past 10 years.

From May to October 2020, one city alone (Portland, Oregon) had more than 50 days of rioting and insurrection, together with violent protests in many other large cities, following the murder of George Floyd.

Perhaps those living in glass houses might consider a more tempered approach to the use of social media before hurling proverbial rocks across the pond. Calm is needed, not provocation.

Beware! Social media is a dangerous tool in the wrong hands, and it has been weaponised by those who would seek to spread lies, misinformation, ‘fake news’ and shape their own agendas.

Please pause for thought and a say a prayer for the families of Elsie Dot Stancombe, seven, Alice da Silva Aguiar, nine, and Bebe King, six, and for all those affected in their community.

As always I can be contacted via mark.irvine@argyll-bute.gov.uk for local matters.