Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Crime, Safeguarding and Vulnerability on 25 June 2018 (152869), what advice they received from the Lead Commissioner on Countering Extremism on the Commission for Countering Extremism’s future structures, work programme and the appointment of further commissioners; and what was their response to such advice.
The independent Commission for Countering Extremism’s study into the threat we face from extremism and the current response, including advice on new policies to tackle it, will report to the Home Secretary and be published shortly. The Government expects the Lead Commissioner’s report to include advice on the Commission’s future structures, work programme and, if necessary, the appointment of further commissioners.
Once the Commission’s has reported to the Home Secretary on its study and it’s been published, the Government’s response will be a decision for the Home Secretary.
The Commission for Countering Extremism’s public Charter is clear that it’s a transparent body operating independently of the Government. This independence extends to its decision about who it engages with and the methodologies and content of its reports.