The British debate over veils began in October 2006 when the MP and government minister Jack Straw wrote in his local newspaper, the Lancashire Evening Telegraph, that, while he did not want to be "prescriptive", he preferred talking to women who did not wear a niqāb (face veil) as he could see their face, and asked women who were wearing such items to remove them when they spoke to him, making clear that they could decline his request and that a female member of staff was in the room.
Description
Straw said he told the newspaper this information to open a debate on the subject, and not because of the upcoming deputy leader election in the Labour Party.'Remove full veils' urges Straw – BBC News. 6 October 2006 Straw was Foreign Secretary at the time of the Iraq War and since 1979 had been the Member of Parliament for the constituency of Blackburn, where at least one quarter of the population are Muslim. Straw later stated that he would like to see the veil "abolished" altogether, adding that he was worried about "implications of separateness".
Straw's views were met with a mixed response, with some agreeing to the idea of a debate, some arguing that Muslim women should not wear veils in the United Kingdom, and some, such as the newspaper the Daily Express, calling for the veil to be banned. Others were opposed to Straw's intervention, and some accused him of encouraging prejudice.
In 2010, Jack Straw publicly apologised over his 2006 comments, stating "If I had realised the scale of publicity that they [his comments] received in October 2006, I wouldn’t have made them and I am sorry that it has caused problems and I offer that apology."26 April 2010
Background
One of the tenets of Islam is a requirement for modesty in both men and women. This concept is known in Arabic as hijab, which refers to far more than Islam and clothing. The word "hijab" has entered English and other European languages with a somewhat different meaning, referring either to sartorial hijab, or to one article thereof, namely the headscarf worn by many Muslim women.
Muslims follow various schools of thought (madhhabs) which have differences of opinions on Islamic law (sharia). Women who wear a face-veil tend to observe the hadiths (sayings of Muhammad) instructing women to cover all that is not essential, which some interpret as everything except the eyes and hands. This belief is a minority position. Most Muslims believe women should allow their faces to be visible, but should cover the hair (and, in many cultures, the throat as well). An even smaller minority wear all-covering garments such as the burqa. These rulings (fatwa) are based on the understandings of modesty and the public display of the body (awrah).
Expressions of opposition to the wearing of the niqab Following Straw's comments, support came from fellow Labour members, the then-opposition Conservatives, right-wing national press and others.
Tony Blair, then Labour Prime Minister, described veils as a "mark of separation",Blair's concerns over face veils BBC News Online. 17 October 2006 and Gordon Brown, then Chancellor of the Exchequer, agreed with this approach, adding that he thought it would be "better for Britain" if fewer Muslim women wore the veil, and that he supports "what Jack Straw has said".Brown breaks ranks to back Straw over lifting Muslim veils – 11 October 2006
Labour MP Nigel Griffiths, then Deputy Leader of the Commons, said "it's all very well for Muslim women to say that they feel comfortable wearing the veil but ... the veil does not make other people feel comfortable. In that way it could be said that they are being selfish."It's selfish to wear the veil, says Straw aide – Evening Standard. 7 October 2006 Phil Woolas, another Labour MP, who had a position in charge of race relations policy, said that Muslim women wearing the veil are "frightening and intimidating" and congratulated Straw for starting the debate.'Muslim women who wear the veil can be frightening & intimidating' – Sunday Mirror. 8 October 2006
The Shadow Home Secretary, David Davis of the Conservatives, suggested that Muslims were responsible for white flight, adding that the Parliament may be "inadvertently encouraging a kind of voluntary apartheid".Tories accuse Muslims of 'creating apartheid by shutting themselves off' – The Daily Telegraph. 15 October 2006 Bill Deedes, a former Conservative Party politician, added his weight to the debate in an opinion piece in The Daily Telegraph, saying that Islam "is the only faith on Earth that persuades its followers to seek political power and impose a law – sharia – which shapes everyone's style of life", and that Islam "forbids" Muslims from conforming with British society.Muslims can never conform to 'our' ways – The Daily Telegraph. 20 October 2006
Simon Jenkins wrote a piece for The Sunday Times asking why Muslim women who wore the veil wanted to live in the UK; however, he cast doubt on the effectiveness of Straw's statements. – Simon Jenkins at The Sunday Times. October 2006
Speaking to The Jewish Chronicle, French philosopher Bernard-Henri Lévy asserted that "the veil is an invitation to rape" because, as philosopher Emmanuel Lévinas said, "[having seen] the naked face of your interlocutor, you cannot kill him or her, you cannot rape him, you cannot violate him."<ref>The Jewish Chronicle, 14 October 2006 edition. Not available online, quote in context: "Our time is almost up, but BHL becomes the most animated I have seen him when I ask him about Jack Straw's intervention on Muslim women and the veil. 'Jack Straw', he says, leaning close to me, 'made a great point. He did not say that he was against the veil. He said it is much easier, much more comfortable, respectful, to speak with a woman with a naked face. And without knowing, he quoted Levinas, who is the philosopher of the face. Levinas says that [having seen] the naked face of your interlocutor, you cannot kill him or her, you cannot rape him, you cannot violate him. So when the Muslims say that the veil is to protect women, it is the contrary. The veil is an invitation to rape'''"</ref>
In August 2018, Boris Johnson was criticised for a column that he had written in the Daily Telegraph. As part of an article arguing that burqa bans like the one introduced in Denmark were wrong, as women should be free to wear what they want, Johnson nevertheless said that Muslim women who wore burqas "look like letter boxes" and compared them to "bank robbers". In response to the piece, the Muslim Council of Britain accused Johnson of "pandering to the far right", while the Labour MP Jess Phillips said she would report Johnson to the Equality and Human Rights Commission. The Chairman of the Conservative Party, Brandon Lewis, called on Johnson to apologise for his remarks. The Conservative peer Baroness Warsi accused Johnson of indulging in "dog whistle" politics and called for disciplinary action if he did not apologise. The Conservative MP Nadine Dorries, however, said that Johnson "did not go far enough" and it was the Government which should be apologising. Dorries said the burqa should have no place in Britain and it was "shameful that countries like France and Denmark are way ahead of us on this".
In the aftermath of the Johnson article, Emily Thornberry, the Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs for the Labour Party, said about British Muslim women who decide to dress in the niqab, "I wouldn’t want my four year old looked after by somebody wearing a burka."
Opposition by political parties The UK Independence Party (UKIP) has had a policy to ban full-facial coverings since 2010, while the British National Party (BNP) favoured banning it only in schools. In 2014, UKIP clarified their stance, favouring only a ban at schools and places where security is a concern, while the BNP are now in favour of a total ban.
Britain First and Restore Britain supports a ban on full-facial coverings.
Opposition to raising of the issue Opposition to the debate mainly came from left and far-left politicians, parties and newspapers,Jack Straw's veil comments threaten to inflame racism – Socialist Worker. 7 October 2006. but also from some Conservative politicians.
Ken Livingstone, then the Labour Mayor of London, said that he was "amazed by his [Straw's] insensitivity", adding that "bearing in mind this person [the constituent] has come to you to ask for something, the power imbalance in that relationship means it’s completely unacceptable behaviour on Jack Straw’s part. That a powerful man can say to a completely powerless woman, I think you should take your veil off, I think is completely and utterly wrong and insensitive." The socialist Respect Party urged Straw to resign. "Who does Jack Straw think he is to tell his female constituents that he would prefer they disrobe before they meet him," George Galloway said in a press release. "For that is what this amounts to. It is a male politician telling women to wear less."Jack Straw: resign now or be driven out at the election – RESPECT The Unity Coalition Press release. 5 October 2006 The Socialist Workers Party said that Straw's words allowed for an "open season for all who want to blame Muslims for the problems in Britain and to blame the victims of racism for the racism in society".
Writing in The Guardian, Madeleine Bunting claimed that Straw's "singling out" of Muslim women actually intensifies the division that Straw says he wants to remove.Jack Straw has unleashed a storm of prejudice and intensified division – Madeleine Bunting writing for The Guardian. 9 October 2006
Daniel Hannan, prominent Conservative MEP and columnist for The Daily Telegraph, stated that "clothing ought not to be a matter for the courts." He also pointed out that other highly offensive pieces of clothing (to him) such as Adolf Hitler T-shirts, Che Guevara T-shirts, and Osama bin Laden T-shirts are inherently considered legal due to freedom of expression. Baroness Warsi, a Muslim Conservative peer and cabinet minister, has defended women's right to wear the burka. She has said, "Just because a woman wears the burka, it doesn't mean she can't engage in everyday life. If women don't have a choice they are oppressed." She has also said, "There are women who wear the burka who run successful internet businesses which don't require you there face to face." Minister of State for Immigration Damian Green has labelled a ban on face-coverings as "un-British" and "undesirable" for a "tolerant and mutually respectful society" like the U.K.
Opposition to the tone of the debate
John Denham MP said that the debate was "flawed" as the government appeared to be "grandstanding" for the sake of the majority rather than actually listening to the Muslim minority.How not to have a debate – John Yorke Denham writing for The Guardian. 9 October 2006. Trevor Phillips, the chairman of the Commission for Racial Equality, said "I think it's right for him to say 'would you mind not making me feel uncomfortable' in this case, as long as it is clearly understood the answer to that can be 'no'."Race equality head backs Straw on wearing of veil – The Independent. 21 October 2006. He later followed up these comments by saying that he feared that the debate "could be the trigger for the grim spiral that produced riots in the north of England five years ago". He said that the debate "seems to have turned into something really quite ugly", adding, "we need to have this conversation but there are rules by which we have the conversation which don't involve this kind of targeting and frankly bullying."Warning over UK race riot danger – BBC News. 22 October 2006