Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what her policy is on the use of the term Islamophobia; and whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of adopting the working definition of Islamophobia published by the APPG on British Muslims in its report entitled Islamophobia defined.

There is no place in our society for religious or racial hatred of any kind. Tackling Islamophobia is a priority for this Government, especially in light of last month’s violent disorder, where we saw mosques and Muslim communities targeted. This is deplorable, and there can be absolutely no place in our society for this violence and intimidation that has wreaked havoc on our communities. This Government has taken rapid action to step up protections for mosques facing significant, imminent threats of disorder, or those dealing with the immediate aftermath of attacks, as part of our Protective Security for Mosques scheme.

We are actively reviewing our approach and considering various options for how best to tackle Islamophobia and all forms of hatred, to deliver a more integrated and cohesive approach to this vital work. We recognise the complexity of this issue, and we want to make sure that any new approach comprehensively reflects multiple perspectives and implications for different communities. We will provide further updates in due course.