The Australian Government Advises Travellers to the UK to Exercise a ‘High Degree of Caution’

Australia has upgraded its travel warning for the UK in response to widespread protests and riots, instructing travellers to exercise a high degree of caution.

Protests in the UK have erupted following the murder of three young girls—Bebe King, 6, Elsie Dot Standcombe, 7, and Alice DaSilva Aguiar, 9—at a dance event in England on July 29. The incident also left several other people injured. The suspect, 17-year-old Axel Rudakubana, was born to Muslim migrant parents, intensifying existing tensions surrounding the UK’s migrant program.

Many in the UK are expressing significant frustration over the high number of Muslims being allowed into the country, the crimes committed, and the perceived lack of assimilation. This has brought the issue of immigration and its impacts to the forefront of public discourse.

Australia’s Smart Traveller website now advises travellers to the UK to exercise a “high degree of caution” in areas where protests and riots are ongoing. Additionally, the site notes that the terrorism threat level for Northern Ireland has been reduced from severe to substantial, indicating that an attack is still likely.

Contributing factors to the threat include Islamic extremism, extreme right-wing ideology, and the status of Northern Ireland. Supporters of the protests have accused British leaders of double standards. Heritage Party Leader David Kurten labelled the approach as “two-tier policing.”

“People are on the streets to protest about the rise in violent crime from migrant communities,” Kurten stated on X (formerly Twitter). “This situation is a direct result of decades of mass rapid immigration imposed on ordinary working people in towns and cities across the country by successive governments. Now, this unrest is spreading everywhere—to every town, every city, every village in the UK.”

Kurten encouraged peaceful protest while condemning violence and looting. He claimed that police have been harsh on anti-migration protesters, whereas those protesting other causes have faced less severe responses.

Australia’s updated travel warning comes just days after the warning level for terror attacks on Australian soil was increased to “probable” amid concerns about youth radicalisation and hybrid ideologies.