Worcester City Council has voted to support a national anti-fascism campaign following reports of escalating hate crimes and racist incidents across the city.

Councillors overwhelmingly backed a motion endorsing Hope Not Hate, an organisation opposing far-right extremism, during a full council meeting this week.

The motion, proposed by Councillor Ed Kimberley, called on the council to reaffirm a “zero-tolerance approach to all forms of hate crime and discrimination”. Only Reform UK’s Alan Amos abstained, prompting shouts of “shame” from fellow councillors.

However, former Conservative councillor Francis Lankester, speaking as a member of the public, raised concerns about the organisation. “Hope Not Hate is not the organisation it used to be,” he warned. “It has developed an obsession with Brexit, Reform and Farage and has become a political attack dog.”

Labour’s Bash Ali highlighted the urgency of action, stating that hate crimes have “rocketed, most of them racially motivated”, coinciding with increased far-right activities aimed at dividing communities.

Several councillors shared disturbing local incidents. Councillor Elaine Willmore described how her friend, an Indian-born nurse who has worked in Worcester for years, suffered racial abuse “weeks after the flag campaign started” and questioned whether her children were safe attending school.

Councillor Jill Desayrah reported that residents confronting people putting up flags on lampposts were met with racist abuse, while Green councillor Alex Mace noted a “marked increase in racist and hate filled abuse and graffiti” alongside the flag campaign, which has “set neighbour against neighbour”.

Councillor Kimberley revealed he received the “phone call of my nightmares” upon learning Nazi graffiti had been sprayed on garages in his ward following what he described as “a barrage of hateful lies about asylum seekers”.

Liberal Democrat councillor Karen Holmes added that an Asian resident now fears using public transport from the railway station. The motion aims to send a clear message that all residents belong in Worcester.