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The founder of a new organisation set up to represent British Muslims in public life has told Byline Times that it is needed to change the status quo in which followers of the Islamic faith are frequently only featured in policy and media discussions, on issues of extremism, counter-terrorism and Islamophobia.
The British Muslim Network (BMN) is a new association launched today (25 February) following “extensive consultation” with Muslims across the country over the past year.
Co-chair Akeela Ahmed MBE, a social entrepreneur and equality campaigner, says the primary motivation for creating the BMN is a recognition that Government engagement with British Muslims has been “inconsistent” and “lacks depth,” limiting Muslim voices in national conversations to specific topics.
Muslims make up just over six per cent of the UK population. But Ahmed says Muslims are typically only consulted by Government, or featured in media debates, on narrow security or faith issues, rather than education, healthcare, or economic policy.
Ahmed set out to this newspaper her motivations for launching the group.
“British Muslims were not having a voice in the national conversation, particularly on issues broader than hate crime, Islamophobia, counter-terrorism, or counter-extremism. We just wouldn’t see or hear from British Muslims on everyday debates on the economy, the NHS, or education.”
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Asked what she would change about politicians’ approaches to engaging with Muslims, she added: “We’d really like to see all political parties of all colours and stripes engaging with British Muslims on a level where we’re seen as partners and seen as people who bring unique experiences, but also unique expertise, especially around some of the challenges that the country is facing at the moment.”
There are already a large number of organisations representing Muslims, from the Muslim Council of Britain to the Association of British Muslims. But Ahmed suggests existing organisations often lack an open membership model.
Perhaps more crucially in terms of political engagement, the previous Government considered placing the Muslim Council of Britain, Britain’s largest representative Muslim organisation, on a list of “extremist” groups, plans which were eventually dropped, as revealed by Byline Times. But the reputational damage was likely already done. The current Government still maintains a policy of non-engagement with the organisation.
Former Conservative Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove also alleged last March in Parliament that at least two other Muslim representative organisations, the Muslim Association of Britain, and Muslim Engagement and Development (MEND) “give rise to concern for their Islamist orientation and views,” a claim the groups reject. Labour followed suit and cut off engagement with MEND, according to the Telegraph.
The British Muslim Network may be, in part, a response to this freezing-out of Muslim engagement in Government.
“There is lots of good work that’s already been done within the British Muslim community ecosystem, but there’s still so much to do, and what we’re hoping is British Muslim Network will add to that ecosystem and be complementary to what’s already out there,” Ahmed told Byline Times. “Our approach is very much a civil society approach,” perhaps in contrast to more hierarchical bodies.
The BMN launches today with the aim of building membership “open to anyone who identifies as Muslim, whether culturally, by heritage, or religiously.”
It plans to partner with other faith groups and civil society organisations to ensure Muslims are fairly represented in British public life.
It comes amid a growing far-right backlash in much of the West, while outlets like GB News primarily feature the word ‘Muslim’ alongside terms like ‘extremist’ or ‘grooming’.
Ahmed points to the rise of the far-right AfD in Germany and others across Europe: “That has been really concerning, because a lot of the rhetoric and motivations of those far-right parties has been driven by anti-Muslim prejudice and Islamophobia…
“I’m very conscious that whilst, for example, in the US, the President might be saying certain things about certain groups, that’s not the sentiment that people in Britain share. We’re really conscious of that, and we really want to build those allies, work together to hold on tight to our progressive liberal values and protect our democracy.”
The co-chair views the exclusion of Muslim voices as a “structural issue” rather than a problem with any particular existing Muslim organisations.
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Former Conservative co-chair (and now independent) Baroness Sayeeda Warsi has been providing advice and guidance to the BMN, drawing on her experience in Government as an advocate for British Muslims.
Ahmed says Muslims comprise two per cent of the educational workforce and three per cent of the NHS workforce, but are rarely heard in those debates.
Initially, the BMN is volunteer-led with private funding from founding members, with plans to seek wider funding from the British Muslim community and philanthropists.
The organisation has planned six roundtables on key themes including health and wellbeing, business and economy, hate crime, and a specific focus on media representation.
The co-chair expressed concern about the rise of far-right politics in Europe and the anti-Muslim rhetoric that fueled the 2024 UK riots, which partly motivated the creation of the BMN.
On media representation, Ahmed cites research she conducted showing that stereotypical media portrayals of Muslims in the media increase negative social media conversations about Muslims.
The co-chair mentioned positive examples of representation like footballing legend Mo Salah and Great British Bake Off winner Nadiya Hussain, who she says have demonstrably reduced Islamophobia through their public presence. Ahmed says Salah’s presence in the Liverpool team has “reduced Islamophobia among huge amounts of Liverpool fans.”
A statement from the British Muslim Network noted that recently published research by the group Tell Mama found the “highest number of anti-Muslim hate cases on record in 2024.”
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And in a likely jibe at Reform UK, it adds: “In recent months mainstream politicians have also increasingly used fear of Muslims to try and garner support.”
Former Conservative deputy chairman Lee Anderson MP was welcomed by Reform UK after claiming that London Mayor Sadiq Khan – who is Muslim – had “given our capital away” to Islamists.
Commenting on the launch, Baroness Sayeeda Warsi said: “For too long British Muslims have been made to feel that their voices do not matter. As a result, many feel alienated and their contribution to our society is underutilised. The British Muslim Network is part of a much-needed effort to change that and I hope everyone, from all backgrounds, will get behind it.”
And former professional England cricketer, Azeem Rafiq, added: “As someone who has experienced racism and Islamophobia throughout my life and career, I understand what it’s like to feel disrespected. The British Muslim Network is bringing people together to support British Muslims to tackle misconceptions and prejudices. It’s an idea whose time has come.”
The Conservative Party’s only female Muslim MP, Deputy Speaker Nusrat Ghani MP, has also backed the new group.
Ahmed’s colleague as co-chair of the British Muslim Network is Imam Qari Asim MBE.
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