Andrew Rosindell – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-02-11.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the success of efforts to reduce the potential radicalisation of British Muslims in the UK.

James Brokenshire

Work to stop people being drawn into extremist and terrorist activity remains
a priority and is focused on: limiting the circulation of terrorist and extremist
material on the internet, supporting more resilient communities and ensuring
individuals at risk of being drawn into terrorism are provided with the support they
need.

In March 2014 we launched a new tool for the public to report terrorist
material to the Counter Terrorism Internet Referral Unit (CTIRU). Public
referrals have tripled since it launched. Working in partnership with industry,
the CTIRU refers unlawful terrorist content to them for removal.

Since February 2010, CTIRU has secured the removal of over 75,000
pieces of unlawful terrorist content with 75% of this total removed since
December 2013.

Radicalisation does not only happen online. We continue to disrupt
propagandists who seek to radicalise vulnerable people directly and counter
their narrative. The police and agencies routinely take action against those
who promote terrorism under our existing terrorist legislation. In the year
ending 30 June 2014, there were 239 persons arrested for terrorism related
offences.

We also exclude foreign nationals from the UK on the grounds of
unacceptable behaviour. Training on awareness of radicalisation now includes
specific advice in relation to travel to Syria and Iraq. We have trained
130,000 frontline staff who may come into contact with potential travellers and
run courses equipping parents to identify risks and have the confidence to seek
support should they need it.

The police, local authorities and all sectors included in the Prevent duty have
a vital role to play in responding to concerns that individuals are being drawn
into terrorism and extremism. Where specific concerns have been raised and
individuals consent, the multi-agency Channel programme provides tailored
support to people identified as at risk of radicalisation.