Sir Keir Starmer fears a repeat of last summer’s riots as he demands urgent action from ministers to repair “fraying” Britain.
The Prime Minister told his Cabinet it was vital Britain’s “social fabric” was healed amid a series of protests outside taxpayer-funded hotels housing asylum seekers.
He also said cultural integration in communities that have experienced high levels of migration must be improved.
Angela Rayner, the deputy prime minister, warned that immigration was having a “profound impact on society”.
She said the government must acknowledge “real concerns” from voters about the impact rapid demographic change is having on issues such as housing and public services, The Times reported.
During a Cabinet awayday last month, Downing Street’s executive director of policy and delivery Liz Lloyd said that social cohesion was “fraying at the edges”.
There are concerns of more unrest after demonstrations outside The Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex led to the largest outbreak of street violence in England since last summer’s riots.
Kemi Badenoch blamed Labour for the strains on social cohesion highlighted by Ms Rayner.
The Conservative leader said: "I'm surprised it's taken her this long to actually understand what is going on."
Speaking in north-west London, she stressed: “Angela Rayner is saying the social fabric is fraying, but she needs to do something about it."
She said she was not worried about further riots on the streets this summer, after the Southport violent protests last year, but added that "we need to be very, very vigilant."
Police also surrounded a hotel in Canary Wharf on Tuesday as protesters descended on the venue amid reports it was to be used as a migrant hotel.
It came after resident Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, 38, who came to Britain on small boat last month, was charged with three counts of sexual assault, one count of inciting a girl to engage in sexual activity, and one count of harassment without violence.
Tommy Robinson, the founder of the English Defence League, has suggested he may make an appearance on Sunday with thousands of supporters.
Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, told reporters on Monday that Britain was close to “civil disobedience on a vast scale”.
Next week marks the one-year anniversary of the Southport murders that led to far-Right rallies outside mosques and hostels.
Sir Keir claims that social media and school absence, as well as small boat crossings, are encouraging people to retreat into “parallel lives”.
Rayner added that “economic insecurity, the rapid pace of deindustrialisation, immigration and the impacts on local communities and public services, technological change and the amount of time people were spending alone online”, along with “declining trust in institutions”, were having a “profound impact on society”.
According to a Downing Street spokesman, Rayner said it “was incumbent on the government to acknowledge the real concerns people have and to deliver improvements to people’s lives in their communities”.
She pointed out that 17 of the 18 areas worst affected by last year’s riots were among the most deprived in the country, adding that “while Britain was a successful multi-ethnic, multi-faith country, the government had to show it had a plan to address people’s concerns”.
In a presentation to ministers at Chequers, Lloyd said a “more forceful” policy on law and order would be needed to restore waning trust in the state.
