Leading article: Tolerance must be maintained

Published: 19 October 2006

Suddenly, the air is thick with anxiety about the activities of Muslim extremists on campus, and whether or not the veil should be worn by Muslim teachers, classroom assistants and students. Are we witnessing the beginning of a government campaign against British Muslims? We think not. But we may be in danger of overreacting to a new climate caused by a constellation of factors in the UK and abroad - the Middle East crisis, the Iraq War and home-grown terrorists incidents, to name three.

To take the first issue first - the suggestion that universities should inform Special Branch of suspicious activities on campus, in particular those of student Islamic societies. There is nothing new about this. In the 1950s, universities were hotbeds of Communist propaganda, just as they spawned Trotskyist groups in the 1960s and 1970s, some of whose members are now in the Government. Special Branch has always taken an interest in young radicals, but many would argue that it is wasting its time because they usually grow out of their student militancy.

In any case, the evidence to date is that British Muslim terrorists have largely been radicalised by people they met in mosques rather than universities - although the cast of characters may overlap. The question is whether universities should be used as instruments of the state's security apparatus, particularly as their role is to promote open debate and knowledge. The answer must be no.

As for veils, we would argue that men and women should be allowed to wear what they like within the bounds of decency. Muslims have a strong sense of cultural identity that has been reinforced by recent events in the Middle East. Young Muslims are undoubtedly engaged in asserting that identity more energetically nowadays. If more young women want to wear the veil as a result, so be it. The majority community has not objected to veils in the past, so why are we objecting now? No wonder some British Muslims feel that they are witnessing an anti-Muslim campaign.

There are more important debates to be had. By abandoning our traditions of tolerance, we play into the hands of the hotheads, and could even deter Muslim women from going to university.