Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-05-24.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential link between the foreign funding of Islamic cultural centres in Belgium and a rise in extremism and terrorism (a) in that country and (b) elsewhere; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

We do not have evidence to prove that the funding of Islamic cultural centres is linked to the rise of extremism and terrorism. We work closely with all levels of government in Belgium and with faith communities to discuss issues of mutual concern, including terrorism and extremism. We have a constructive partnership with Belgium to tackle these shared challenges. We will continue to work with a range of partners to protect UK and British interests.