British Muslims call Islamophobia "top election concern" - survey

Islamophobia is the biggest election issue for Muslims, a British Muslim group said on Wednesday, urging all political parties to commit to tackling "Islamophobia and all forms of racism."

The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) said 74 per cent of more than 500 Muslims surveyed agreed they were "most concerned about the media portrayal of Muslims, and... [want] strong leadership on tackling Islamophobia from the next government."

The intervention by the umbrella group, which represents many of Britain's estimated 2.7 million Muslims, comes amid fierce debate on racism in British politics and media ahead of a snap election on December 12.

The MCB said many Muslims were seriously concerned by Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Conservative party's "consistent failure to tackle the scourge of Islamophobia from within its ranks."

"Regrettably, Islamophobia is prevalent in many parts of public life, and Islamophobia in political parties is particularly concerning," said Harun Khan, the MCB's secretary general.

"Unfortunately, we have seen the Conservative Party continuously fail to address its institutional problem with Islamophobia," Khan said.

The MCB on Tuesday backed comments in The Times by Ephraim Mirvis, the chief rabbi of Britain's orthodox Jews, on "the real fear many British Jews have" over opposition Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn because of the veteran left-winger's handling of anti-Semitism within the party.

It agreed with Mirvis' statement that "some politicians have shown courage [against racism] but too many have sat silent."

"Racism wherever it comes from - whether from the left or the right - is unacceptable, and not enough is being done," the MCB said.

The Muslim Council did not mention Corbyn, but it said Islamophobia was "an issue that is particularly acute in the Conservative Party who have approached Islamophobia with denial, dismissal and deceit."

Asked about the criticism, Johnson reiterated his promise to hold an inquiry into all forms of racism in the Conservatives, apologizing for any "hurt and offence" caused by Islamophobia in the party.

Johnson himself has been accused of Islamophobia and other forms of racism several times in recent years, including against former US president Barack Obama and Sadiq Khan, London's first Muslim mayor.

"Obviously whenever we have an incident of anti-Semitism or Islamophobia or whatever in the Conservative Party, we take a zero-tolerance approach," Johnson told reporters.

"We are going to have an independent inquiry into Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, every manner of prejudice and discrimination," he said.