IT is unlikely that they possess the intelligence to do so, but all those right-wing extremists who are tempted to turn their beliefs into action should carefully read the sentencing statement issued by High Court judge Lord Boyd of Duncansby just before he sent Peter Morgan to jail for 12 years yesterday.
The judge told Morgan in the High Court in Edinburgh: “You assert your right to freedom of speech. However abhorrent some may find your views, you are entitled to hold them. What you are not entitled to do is to act on these views for the purpose of committing or preparing an act of terrorism.”
READ MORE: Scottish Bomb making Neo-Nazi Peter Morgan jailed for 12 years
There’s no doubt Morgan is a thoroughly nasty piece of work whose undoubtedly troubled childhood does not excuse his adoption of a new-Nazi creed – for if it did, this and plenty other countries would be facing far greater problems than we already are experiencing with the far right.
Coming just a couple of months after the murder of Jo Cox by a Scottish far right extremist, the Morgan case is a reminder that Islamist terrorism is not the only threat we face – there is an enemy within, and it’s white and of the right.
Significantly, there was no one – at least no one of any sense – sticking up for Morgan last night. Far right group the Scottish Defence League, of which he claimed membership, won’t use him as a martyr.
The judge added: “In passing sentence I am conscious of the need to deter others who may be tempted to embark on such activity. I also require to consider the safety of the public.
“It is difficult to assess the risk that you might pose on your release from prison but I note that you do not accept your guilt beyond the plea that you offered which was rejected by the Crown.
“While you told the social worker that you would never again collect such material you do not disavow your political views.”
In a nutshell, Lord Boyd has explained what the courts will do if the far right go too far. They will go to prison for a very long time.
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