Overview
- Laila Cunningham said women who cover their faces should face police stop-and-search and argued for a public burqa ban, claiming face covering implies a criminal motive.
- She also described parts of London as feeling like a Muslim city and said Britain should have one civic culture that is British.
- Shaista Gohir of the Muslim Women’s Network UK called the remarks dangerous and a dog whistle, reporting abusive and threatening messages that forced the removal of office signage and staff photos.
- London Mayor Sadiq Khan condemned the proposals as sowing division, while Labour MP Afzal Khan called them a deliberate and cynical ploy.
- A Reform UK spokesman defended stop-and-search powers even as coverage noted the party had not previously adopted a burqa ban, highlighting renewed internal tensions; Cunningham is a British-born Muslim and former CPS prosecutor.