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Muslim women's segregation in UK communities must end - Cameron Muslim women's segregation in UK communities must end - Cameron
(about 2 hours later)
"More assertive" action is needed to tackle discrimination against Muslim women and their segregation in some UK communities, David Cameron has said. A £20m fund to teach Muslim women in the UK to speak English will tackle segregation and help them resist the lure of extremism, David Cameron says.
A review will be conducted of Sharia councils operating in Britain and £20m spent on language classes for the 22% of Muslim women in England said to speak little or no English. While there was no "causal connection" between poor English and extremism, language lessons would make communities "more resilient", Mr Cameron said.
The prime minister said the moves could help combat radicalisation. But some Muslims have accused him of wrongly "conflating" the two issues.
But some Muslims have questioned the link between language and extremism. The PM also suggested failing to learn English could affect people on spousal visas who wanted to settle in the UK.
Writing in the Times, Mr Cameron said the lack of integration within British society of some Muslim communities had helped to foster extremism and allow "appalling practices" such as female genital mutilation and forced marriage. The government says 22% of Muslim women living in England speak little or no English.
"Last week, I chaired a meeting of a group of brilliant Muslim women role models. And while I heard great examples of so many women who are flourishing in our country, some painted an alarming picture of forced gender segregation, discrimination and social isolation from mainstream British life," he said. Launching a range of new measures, the prime minister said "more assertive" action was needed to tackle discrimination against Muslim women and their isolation in some UK communities.
Mr Cameron said it was time to be "more assertive about our liberal values, more clear about the expectations we place on those who come to live here and build our country together and more creative and generous in the work we do to break down barriers". As well as focusing on English language, he also announced a review of the role of Britain's religious councils, including Sharia courts, in an effort to confront men who exert "damaging control over their wives, sisters and daughters".
"This is Britain. In this country, women and girls are free to choose how they live," he said. Segregation, he argued, was allowing "appalling practices" such as female genital mutilation and forced marriage to exist, and increasing vulnerability to recruitment by so-called Islamic State - also known as Daesch.
'Conflating' 'More susceptible'
Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Mr Cameron said the push on language was "about building a more integrated, cohesive, one nation country where there's genuine opportunity for people".
"I think in the past people have thought that the progressive thing to do was to allow people to come to our country and leave them to develop separately in their own ways. I think that is completely wrong."
He said some "menfolk" in Muslim communities were fostering segregation by preventing women from learning English or leaving home alone, adding: "It's holding people back, it's not in tune with British values and it needs to go."
Mr Cameron said there was "a connection with combating extremism" and improving English was important "if we're going to try to help people become more resilient against the messages of Daesch".
"I'm not saying there's some sort of causal connection between not speaking English and becoming an extremist - of course not, that would be a ridiculous thing to say," he continued.
"But if you're not able to speak English, you're not able to integrate, you may find, therefore, that you have challenges understanding what your identity is and you could be more susceptible to the extremist message that comes from Daesch."
New rules will mean that from October, people coming to the UK on a five-year spousal visa will have to take a test after two and a half years to show they are making efforts to improve their English.
The government said there were "no plans to remove migrants who fail to reach the required level, but it would be taken into account in any request to extend visas or apply for permanent residence".
Asked what would happen to those who failed, Mr Cameron told Today: "They can't guarantee that they'll be able to stay."
'Unhelpful'
BBC political correspondent Ross Hawkins says the government's counter-extremism strategy has previously been criticised by the Muslim Council of Britain as being based on fuzzy conceptions of British values.BBC political correspondent Ross Hawkins says the government's counter-extremism strategy has previously been criticised by the Muslim Council of Britain as being based on fuzzy conceptions of British values.
Dal Babu, a former chief superintendent with the Metropolitan Police who now works with families whose children have gone to fight with so-called Islamic State, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme the investment in language lessons was welcome. Dal Babu, a former chief superintendent with the Metropolitan Police who now works with families whose children have gone to fight with IS, told Today the investment in language lessons was welcome.
But he added: "My concern is how we have conflated the issue of learning English with stopping radicalism and extremism... to conflate the two is unhelpful."But he added: "My concern is how we have conflated the issue of learning English with stopping radicalism and extremism... to conflate the two is unhelpful."
Mr Babu also said he did not recognise the figure of 22% as the proportion of Muslim women without good English - instead quoting a figure of 6%, cited by racial equality think tank the Runnymede Trust.Mr Babu also said he did not recognise the figure of 22% as the proportion of Muslim women without good English - instead quoting a figure of 6%, cited by racial equality think tank the Runnymede Trust.
Mr Cameron will announce a raft of new policies later as part of his plan to tackle segregation and discrimination. Dr Sundas Ali, a lecturer at Oxford University who researches Muslims in Britain, said language might be a barrier for some women, but there were much bigger factors.
Highlighting statistics showing that 190,000 Muslim women lack English language skills, there will be a push to improve English language classes for migrants. They will be targeted at "specific communities" identified by a review into segregation being conducted by Louise Casey, head of the government's "troubled families" unit. "I think there's an overall cultural problem in a lot of the Muslim community which is of low expectations. I think Muslim women are not encouraged as much as non-Muslim women to excel in their education and their careers."
The lessons will take place in homes, schools and community facilities, with travel and childcare costs - described as "some of the greatest barriers to participation" - being covered. An existing scheme is said to have helped more than 30,000 adults. She agreed there was no automatic link between not speaking English and being radicalised, but added: "Overall, I see what he [David Cameron] is trying to do and I do appreciate that, but I think there are other issues affecting Muslim women which he should have mentioned, such as hate crimes."
In his article, Mr Cameron said it was the responsibility of migrants to improve their English language skills if they wanted to extend their stay in the UK or seek citizenship. The language lessons will be targeted at "specific communities" identified by a review into segregation that is being conducted by Louise Casey, head of the government's "troubled families" unit.
There are no plans to remove people who fail to reach a required level, but the government points out that language skills are taken into account when people request to extend visas or apply for permanent residence in the UK. They will take place in homes, schools and community facilities, with travel and childcare costs - described as "some of the greatest barriers to participation" - being covered. An existing scheme is said to have helped more than 30,000 adults.
And in a move to confront men who exert "damaging control over their wives, sisters and daughters", the prime minister will announce a review of the role of Britain's religious councils, including Sharia courts. The PM acknowledged cuts had been made to free language classes for immigrants during the last Parliament, but said the new £20m fund was "more targeted".
Health visitors, job centres, nurseries and schools should play their part, Mr Cameron said, adding: "But we all have a shared responsibility to tackle prejudice and bigotry, and help integration. What do you think about this? Do you feel integrated into UK society, or have you experienced "forced gender segregation, discrimination and social isolation from mainstream British life"? Email haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk with your stories.
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