Britain’s largest Muslim umbrella body said it was deeply concerned by the closure of account notices served upon a number of Muslim charities some of whom are our affiliates, the latest of these being Ummah Welfare Trust who have been given 30 days by the Barclays Bank to close their account.
The Muslim Council of Britain’s (MCB) Deputy Secretary General, Dr Daud Abdullah, said: “We are astonished and angered by these developments because in every reported instance no explicit reasons are given by the banks.” He added: “Clearly those worst affected would not be the officials who administer the charities but the tens of thousands of impoverished people who rely on their humanitarian aid and support.” Where there is no breach of British law or the statutory regulations governing their charity status, there is no justification for these summary closures and denial of services, the MCB said. “We have already communicated our concerns to the highest level of government, the Charity Commission and the banks concerned and despite having received assurances that the matter is receiving urgent attention with a view to equitable resolution, we find that the actions against Muslim charities are being escalated,” said Dr. Abdullah.
