Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Written Statement of 18 December 2014, HCW5154, which individual with extremist views was invited by Islamic Help to speak at one of its events.

We will not fund any organisation that supports or is linked to individuals who fuel hatred, division and violence. We will fund only those programmes and organisations that actively encourage integration and uphold fundamental British values. Where the House is informed of a decision to cease funding an organisation, we aim to communicate final decisions to the organisations at the same time. This procedure was followed in the case of the Muslim Charities Forum.

The decision to cease funding the Muslim Charities Forum was made following a formal review of the project, which found concerns surrounding performance, governance and the support of individuals with extremist views.

In August 2014, Islamic Help, a member organisation of the Muslim Charities Forum, organised a fundraising event for Syria, presented by Uthman Lateef. This individual has espoused hatred and division and on this basis my Department wrote to Faith Action requesting that they no longer fund Islamic Help.