Denham announces council funding to tackle white extremists

Published by Jon Land for 24dash.com in Local Government and also in Communities

Efforts to tackle violent extremism should not focus solely on potential Islamist terrorists, a senior Cabinet minister said today, as he announced new funding to target the threat from white supremacists.

Communities Secretary John Denham said al Qaida-inspired terrorism was still the main threat against the UK and reaffirmed the Government's commitment to stop young Muslims being indoctrinated into violence.

But he called for councils and the police to turn their attention to radicalisation by white racist extremists and pledged an extra £5 million for councils in England.

Where neo-Nazi groups are present, Muslims should not be the only groups targeted by the authorities, he said.

He said: "It is important that local Muslim communities do not feel they are being singled out if other forms of extremism are a threat in the area."

Police have issued a series of warnings about the growing threat from violent white supremacists in recent months.

The country's most senior anti-terror officer, Assistant Commissioner John Yates, last month pointed to the dangers of attacks from "lone wolf" bombers.

Earlier this year Neil Lewington, nicknamed the "Bedroom Bomber", was convicted of planning a racist terror campaign on the streets of Britain, inspired by Oklahoma bomber Timothy McVeigh and Soho nail bomber David Copeland.

Recent months have also seen a rise in anti-Muslim demonstrations by groups such as the far right English Defence League in major cities. Last weekend clashes turned to violence in Nottingham as demonstrators fought with police.

The Government's £140 million anti-extremism campaign, known as Prevent, targets Muslims at risk of being seduced by radical ideologies.

In a major speech in Birmingham, Mr Denham told an audience of Prevent workers that every council should also have a strategy for countering far right extremism.

He admitted the Prevent campaign has been hampered by a "lack of clarity" about what it should involve and called for greater transparency.

But he will hit back at claims that it involves "spying" on Muslim communities.

"There should be no information-gathering or information-sharing about the community aspects of the work which cannot be openly acknowledged with every member of the Prevent partnership and the wider community," he said.