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Prevent data reveals ‘Islamist’ referrals on the rise

(Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

While all eyes were on the Prime Minister’s big ‘plan for change’ announcement today, the government also chose this morning to release some new data to the public. One of the reports published today includes the latest Prevent stats – and they paint a rather interesting picture. Between March 2023 and 2024, there were a staggering 6,922 referrals to the programme which when broken down reveal an uptick in cases being referred due to ‘Islamist concerns’, a rise of over 130 from the previous year. How very interesting…

The gap between referrals for extreme right wing behaviour and Islamist concerns has narrowed notably in the year ending March 2024, with the number of extreme right wing referrals remaining fairly similar to those recorded in previous reports. Meanwhile, concerns about Islamist radicalisation saw a rise in referrals by 5 per cent on the previous year – although cases overall are still much lower than the 2017 peak of nearly 4,000 annual referrals.

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Steerpike

Steerpike is The Spectator's gossip columnist, serving up the latest tittle tattle from Westminster and beyond. Email tips to steerpike@spectator.co.uk or message @MrSteerpike

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