THE Manchester Arena bombing of 2017 is probably the most barbaric, murderous event on UK soil in my lifetime. Twenty-two innocent people were killed, and 139 were wounded, more than half of them children.

It is estimated that 850 Britons have travelled to fight for or to support jihadist groups in Syria and Iraq including “The Beatles”, who butchered their captives and posted the videos online. Islamist terrorists have killed more than 450 people in Europe since 2014.

Given all this, is it was something of a surprise to find Sir Mark Rowley use his leaving speech as head of counter terrorism to explain that what concerned him was right-wing, Neo-Nazi, white supremacists with “a violent and wicked ideology”. If we’re not careful, Sir Mark noted, if we “sleepwalk”, these groups and ideas could infiltrate the mainstream. Beware.

Sir Mark justified his concerns, in part, by explaining that four of the 14 terrorist plots foiled last year were planned by right-wing extremists. It seems reasonable therefore to take this matter seriously. But what about the other 10 and what about the 35:1 ratio of people killed in the UK by Islamist terrorists compared to right-wingers? Is the threat of Neo-Nazi white supremacists really the issue that the British security forces should be preoccupied by?

Rather than “sleepwalking”, concern, anger and at times hysteria about the “far right” proliferates today, turning usually rational, intelligent people into, well, something less than rational. Following the Brexit vote my colleague and friend explained to me that we were returning to the 1930s; Tony Blair agrees with him. I was in Kent on the day following the vote and looked out of the window that morning waiting for the pitchfork-wielding crowd, but none showed up.

The terms “fascist” and “Nazi” trip off the tongue and it seems almost anyone who is right of centre or nationalistic can be branded. Donald Trump’s a fascist, Nigel Farage – fascist, Hungary’s Orban is a “neo-fascist thug”. Jacob Rees-Mogg was greeted by protester howls of “fascist” and “racist” as he attempted to enter West of England University. In response a conservative columnist branded the protesters fascist for their activities. Last year, a 40,000 strong anti-fascist counter protest in Boston, Massachusetts, turned up to out-shout the far right. One turned to the Boston Globe reporter and asked: “Where are the white supremacists?” As I look out of my window again and still see no pitchforks I suspect the most accurate answer is “in your head”.

One of the fascinating aspects of this preoccupation with white extremists is that the approach to Islamic extremism, often by the same people, appears to be the very opposite. Where there is an attempt to hype up the threat of fascism, the threat of Islamism is often downplayed. Where the issue of the far right is politicised, mobilised against and denounced by right-thinking people, there is often silence. Rather than hand out pitchforks we find candles being given to a confused public. Shush, mourn, have a vigil, but let’s not make a meal of these bombs and beheadings or the backward medieval ideology being spouted.

Labour’s Sarah Champion was recently pushed out of her post as equalities spokesperson for pointing out that the large-scale child abuse in Rotherham was being carried out by mainly Pakistani men, one critic denouncing her for perpetrating “industrial-scale racism”. Does she have a point? I think she does. But the myopic and often unthinking concern about racism and Islamophobia appears to stamp down on what we need, which is an open discussion about these matters, one that doesn’t start from the extreme belief that the white working class in Britain is a pogrom in waiting. And even if they were, that would be all the more reason to be having these debates.

Sir Mark Rowley sent out a warning in his speech about the far right getting into the mainstream political debate. We need to be alert he said, “whatever leadership or political or journalistic position we are in, we need to be alert and guard against it”. What did he mean? Should we be censoring certain views, watching out for the neos and blocking their dangerous opinions? Or worse, should we be arresting people for holding them?

Perhaps we could ask the Swansea fan, arrested and charged for giving a Nazi salute at Spurs fans this week. Or perhaps talk to Count Dankula, that Coatbridge YouTuber who trained his girlfriend’s dog to do a Nazi salute as a joke who was found guilty of a hate crime. It seems even playing at being a fascist can lead to arrest today.

It’s time we pointed out that being liberal and tolerant does not mean “respecting difference” or being non-judgmental. It means being open and critical, allowing people to spout what they like but then challenging their views, their religion, their politics. And not arresting them for having these views. This is what being part of a civilised society means, it is what separates us from the terrorists. We are getting it very wrong.

Dr Stuart Waiton is a senior lecturer in sociology at Abertay University.