The Spectator’s Notes | 16 July 2005

On the whole, I believe in what politicians like to call ‘the innate good sense of the British people’, but the reactions of so many friends to last week’s bombings depress me. There is a funny mixture of complacency — ‘We will always be stronger than they are’ — with fatalism — ‘There’s absolutely nothing we can do about it.’ Both are wrong. Islamist extremists could not beat us in a direct war, but they will undermine our way of life if they can exercise a hold over a growing Muslim population. Already, according to the Muslim Council of Britain’s own figures, Muslims will account for ‘well over a quarter’ of the growth of the working population from 1999 to 2009, and much of this will concentrate on London. After last week’s events, there can be few white couples with children in London who have not at least considered moving out. Eventually, the capital becomes a religious/ ethnic conflict zone where the authorities are forced to do deals with the extremists to keep any semblance of order. As for what we can do, there’s plenty. It seems that eight serious attacks have been foiled by the authorities’ vigilance since September 11, so the fact that one was not stopped does not mean that none can be. We can also create a climate intolerant of those whose words give cover to terrorism. At present, we appease. ‘We can still talk about it!’ we say, ‘Don’t do it! Don’t do it!’ Those were the last words of the Dutch film-maker, Theo Van Gogh, as he was murdered by a Muslim fanatic on the streets of Amsterdam.

Another thing said is, ‘But most of the Muslims I come across are sweet, peaceful people.’ True, at least in my experience, but the unanswered question is, how can the sweet, peaceful people best be empowered? One could demand answers from British Muslim leaders to some hard questions.