Gordon Brown yesterday announced a four-fold increase in funding for a range of measures to help Muslim groups tackle violent extremism in their communities. Over the next three years, the government will set aside _70m to support local authorities and community groups to improve how they deal with the threat of terrorism in their midst, he said. The measures include lessons on citizenship in Britain’s 1,000 madrasas, or Islamic religious schools, sponsorship of English-speaking imams and a proposal for interfaith bodies in every community. The prime minister said the money would “support local authorities and community groups in improving the capacity of local communities to resist violent extremism. This will include developing leadership programmes for young people, strengthening the capacity of women’s groups, and local projects to build citizenship”.
