Robert Jenrick has stunned the public by saying anyone chanting “Allahu Akbar” on British streets should be arrested.
The Tory leadership hopeful and former cabinet minister was commenting on the baseless claims the British police operate a two-tier system, where they are supposedly more lenient to protesters of colour than to white people.
The claim has been repeatedly thrown around ever since the anti-immigration, far-right riots began last week, and police started to arrest people en masse.
Sky News’ Wilfred Frost asked Jenrick if “two-tier policing” has had any application to the last few days.
Though he did not answer directly, Jenrick said: “I have been very critical of the police in the past, particularly around the attitude of some police forces to the protests since October 7 [Hamas’ attack on Israel.]
“I thought it was quite wrong somebody could shout Allahu Akbar on the streets of London and not be immediately arrested, or project genocidal chants onto Big Ben, and that person not be immediately arrested.
“That attitude is wrong and I’ll always call out the police for it.”
The Arabic phrase means “God is greater” and usually used in times of joy or distress.
His comments were met with widespread fury on social media.
Muslim MP Zarah Sultana reposted a clip of the interview, saying: “When we say Islamophobia and racism is normalised and goes unchallenged, this is literally what we’re talking about.”
Labour MP Naz Shah, vice-chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims, also responded to Jenrick’s claim, writing: “This is complete ignorance and textbook Islamophobia from Robert Jenrick. It literally equates every Muslim in the world with extremism.”
She added that “Allahu Akbar” is a “basic Islamic saying” used in everyday Muslim prayers, and compared to a Christian phrase such as “Jesus Chris as your lord and saviour”,.
She called for Jenrick to apologise and speak to “Muslim communities to learn more about our faith”.
Jenrick later rowed back on his comments a little, writing on X: ”‘Allahu Akbar’ is spoken peacefully and spiritually by millions of British Muslims in their daily lives.
“But the aggressive chanting below is intimidatory and threatening. And it’s an offence under Section 4 and 5 of the Public Order Act. Extremists routinely abuse common expressions for their own shameful ends. All violence must end. All violence must be called out.”
However, Tory peer Sayeeda Warsi replied to that, saying: “No Robert you do not get to go on national broadcasters and say one thing and try and pretend you said something else after!!”
Meanwhile, Met Police Commissioner Mark Rowley has completely dismissed any claims that British officers take part in “two-tier policing”.
“It’s complete nonsense,” he told Sky. “We have commentators, from either end of the political spectrum, who like to throw accusations of bias at the police because we stand in the middle.
“We operate independently, under the law, without fear or favour.”
He said: “The serious voices who echo those are of more concern to me because the risk is they legitimise it, they legitimise the violence that the officers I am sending on later today will face later today.”
He said he did not want to give anyone “credit” by naming them for perpetuating this conspiracy theory.
Rowley said: “But if you are a keyboard warrior, you are not safe from the law if you incite violence.”
Jenrick, who has moved further right in recent years, also claimed in February “we’ve allowed our streets to be dominated by Islamist extremists”.
He quit as Rishi Sunak’s migration minister at the end of last year because he thought the Rwanda deportation scheme did not go far enough.