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There is something inherently troubling about the notion that children should be identified as potential future terrorists.
So the scheme launched by Waltham Forest education authority to identify children potentially at risk of being recruited by Islamic extremists raises important questions. The new approach would encourage teachers to identify Muslim children who seem vulnerable to jihadists, even those as young as 11.
Of course, this initiative is benign in intent. It is bad enough that universities are breeding grounds for extremism but it would be far worse if young children were to be exposed to extremist rhetoric, for example at Muslim religious schools. A Home Office study somehow identified some 200 young children as being vulnerable to exploitation by Islamic extremists. And there would be no penalty for being identified as a potential radical; children would simply be offered alternative activities.
But the responsibility of a school head should be to ensure that children are not subjected to outside damaging influences of any kind, whether from potential gang members or from Islamic extremists. Teachers' normal pastoral care for children similarly should involve discussions about values; their religious education should allow for them to confront radical ideology. The Government has set much store by its anti-extremism strategy, to foster moderation in Islamic communities. But it should be wary of measures that might stigmatise some children and alienate their families — or that rely on questionable long-term predictions for individuals.
Defending the realm
The backdrop to the green paper on the future of the armed forces which Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth launched today is simple. There will have to be cuts in defence spending, regardless of which party wins the election. Even though the Government has promised to ringfence spending on frontline forces in Afghanistan, that leaves other areas of defence open for cuts. And if the NHS and schools are to be protected as ministers promise, then the axe must fall elsewhere.
One imaginative way out, as suggested in the green paper, is that Britain should engage much more actively in co-operation with EU defence forces and specifically with France. There may be peacekeeping operations where Britain can engage productively with European forces; co-operation with France is easier now that France has rejoined Nato but this is not a panacea. EU member states have their own foreign policy objectives — as was demonstrated during the Kosovo conflict, or indeed, in Iraq, a war to which France was opposed.
There is no way out of hard choices — Mr Ainsworth proposes cutting thousands of defence posts — which should still leave Britain fit to fight likely future conflicts. Trident is one obvious target; so too is naval spending on grandiose projects such as aircraft carriers, better suited to the Cold War — which makes it extraordinary that Mr Ainsworth today specifically confirmed the Government's commitment to those projects. Meanwhile, the Army enjoys public esteem because of its role in Afghanistan. But military spending is at present levels unsustainable.
Next stop Germany
The sheer glamour of Continental railway stations, where the departures board includes destinations all over Europe, may soon be apparent in the Eurostar terminals here. Direct services to German cities may be available before the Olympics. Berlin and Frankfurt, here we come!
