Downing Street was forced yesterday to defend its appointment of Britain’s first counterextremism commissioner after complaints from Muslim groups.
A petition to the Home Office signed by 100 Muslim organisations and scholars called for Sara Khan to be removed from her new role as head of the Commission for Countering Extremism.
Muslim groups are understood to be upset at the appointment because of Ms Khan’s support for the Prevent programme against violent extremism.
Ms Khan, the co-founder of Inspire, a counterextremism and women’s rights organisation, was accused of being a “mouthpiece” for the government by Baroness Warsi, a former chairwoman of the Conservative Party. She described the move as “a deeply disturbing appointment” and said on Twitter: “Sara is sadly seen by many as simply a creation of and mouthpiece for the Home Office.”
The Muslim Council of Britain expressed grave concerns about the appointment. Harun Khan, its secretary-general, said: “The fight against terrorism requires equal partnership between all parties, including Muslim communities. This appointment risks sending a clear and alarming message that the government has no intention of doing so.”
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The commission, which is likely to be based in central London, will be given the task of identifying extremism and advising ministers on policies and laws to tackle it. It will help to train schools and colleges to spot the warning signs of extremism and will have a special responsibility to ensure that women’s rights are upheld.
Responding to criticism of the appointment, the prime minister’s spokesman said: “Sara Khan is expertly qualified to lead the important work of the new Commission for Countering Extremism and she will bring a wealth of experience and knowledge to the commission.”
Ms Khan was also defended by David Anderson, QC, the former independent reviewer of counterterrorism legislation. He said the idea that she was a government “stooge” was hard to reconcile with her opposition to the government’s ill-fated plans for a counterextremism bill. He added: “I for one will be giving Sara a fair chance, and wishing her the good luck that I suspect she will need.”
Dame Louise Casey, the government’s former integration tsar, praised the “really important appointment” of Ms Khan, adding: “She doesn’t deny there is a problem . . . I think she has enormous courage, I think she is fiercely independent.”
A letter to Amber Rudd, the home secretary, signed by imams and Muslim groups, said that Ms Khan had no grassroots credibility among the community.
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According to Sky News the letter said: “We believe that this appointment will further damage relations between the government and Muslim communities. We have no confidence in this appointment and are concerned that Muslim communities will refuse to liaise with Ms Khan.”
It was signed by the Muslim Council of Britain and the organisation Mend (Muslim Engagement and Development). The latter was accused last year by a conservative think tank of promoting conspiratorial narratives encouraging the belief that Islamophobia was intentionally driven by government policies and the media.