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Terrorism and Community Relations

: I absolutely agree. That is a strong, well made point, which echoes what has been said by several speakers, particularly the hon. Members for Keighley and for Aylesbury, who touched on genuine cultural difficulties. It is vital that all of us engage with and accept those cultural difficulties, often in the face of real barriers to acceptance of those difficulties in the communities. We must take on board the Committee's report and, more importantly, address the causes of riots, of ghettoisation in some northern towns and cities, and of the appalling events of 7 July, which was when we all realised how serious some of the problems are. I want to reiterate a point first made by my hon. Friend the Member for Brent, East (Sarah Teather): she said that we would not be talking about the issue if we were not absolutely clear that it was not Muslims who attacked London on 7 July but criminals and fanatics who happened to be from a small, fundamental fanatical minority of Muslims in west Yorkshire. One thing that has been inspiring to all of us—all the way up to Government, I hope—is the absolute and outright condemnation of the terrorist acts from all communities that were in any way associated with the events of 7 July. Equally, we have to ask the question that we have had to ask ourselves in Leeds, Dewsbury and Aylesbury, which is why four young men from west Yorkshire went to bomb their own capital city. The Muslim community has to ask because the men were Muslims; people from Yorkshire, including me, because they were from Yorkshire; and all of us, as British citizens because they were also British citizens. The Minister is committed to the process of listening and understanding, so I would ask her to continue to do that and more. I strongly commend the hon. Member for Keighley for having said that we must reach out to the young and disaffected sections of communities, because they are the ones most likely to be tempted down the path of fanaticism and disillusionment. We must also—again, I pay tribute to the hon. Lady's work—connect with the women of Muslim communities. I share her belief that it is largely through the women that we will find solutions to the problems. I was delighted that she fought off the British National party threat so convincingly in the election. I was not threatened then by the BNP, but I must be doing something right now because after only a few months I am listed on its website as an enemy of the BNP.