Following on from this post, I have now had an opportunity to talk to some of those with an insight into the process by which the Quilliam funding decision was made.
Paul Goodman had pointed the finger at “the role of Charles Farr, Director-General of the Office for Security and Counter-Terrorism”
Charles Farr did, in fact, argue for retention of Quilliam funding for quite some time. However, in the end, the decision to make the cut – along with Prevent projects generally – was made by Ministers.
Quilliam will continue, and so will many others who share their political perspectives. However, we should all bear in mind that there are a number of think tanks, one academic institution, and a number of religious and social institutions which are controlled by Jamaat-e-Islami and the Muslim Brotherhood, not to mention the more extreme and antisocial of the Salafi outfits, which preach hatred of other minority groups.
There is a funding battle taking place at the moment. One one side are certain Islamist political parties, who are dynamic and confident. The other side of the battle isn’t simply a matter for Government. The main burden should fall on civil society as a whole.