'UK Islamists creating no-go areas'

Bishop of Rochester The Rt Rev Dr Michael Nazir-Ali says non-Muslims face a hostile reception in places dominated by the ideology of Islamic radicals.

He criticises the doctrine of multiculturalism for creating separate communities which fail to integrate in to the mainstream of society.

In a wide-ranging attack, Bishop Nazir-Ali compares intimidation by Muslim radicals to that by far-Right extremists.

Writing for The Sunday Telegraph, he condemns the failure to give privilege to the established church which he says has led to a "multi-faith mish-mash".

He says the integration agenda pursued by the government "lacks...a moral and spiritual vision."

Dr Nazir-Ali questions whether elements of Sharia law are applicable in Britain and confronts directly the use of loudspeakers on mosques to spread the call to prayer.

He writes: "...there has been a worldwide resurgence of the ideology of Islamic extremism. One of the results of this has been to further alienate the young from the nation in which they were growing up and also to turn already separate communities into "no-go" areas where adherence to this ideology has become a mark of acceptability."

Shadow home secretary Tory David Davis said the Government's actions risked creating a "voluntary apartheid".

He said: "Bishop Nazir-Ali has drawn attention to a deeply serious problem. The Government's confused and counter-productive approach risks creating a number of closed societies instead of one open, cohesive one - a voluntary apartheid. It generates the risk of encouraging radicalisation and creating home-grown terrorism."