Lord Ahmed, the All-Party Parliamentary Friends of Islam Group and the Cordoba Foundation

Tonight, the All Party Parliamentary Group Friends of Islam (FOI) is hosting a discussion at the House of Lords about Preventing Violent Extremism with Arun Kundnani (of the Institute for Race Relations), Bob Lambert and Dr Abdul Bari of the Muslim Council of Britain, an organisation that is currently in the doghouse after its deputy director-general signed a declaration “advocating attacks on the Royal Navy if it tries to stop arms for Hamas being smuggled into Gaza” and “in support of Hamas and military action”. Those invited initially thought this was simply an event hosted by Lord Ahmed and FOI, a group he founded in 2001 and of which he is currently an advisor. Interestingly, according to her Facebook page, Yvonne Ridley, who quite likes Hamas, was a founder member.

However, it then became apparent that Lord Ahmed was co-organising this event with the Cordoba Foundation. In the past the Cordoba Foundation received Prevent funding but it was required to return some of the money it had received after organising an event with Hizb ut-Tahrir. Here is what David Cameron said about the Cordoba Foundation:

Another area of concern is the way that public money that is meant to be used to combat extremism has ended up in the hands of extremists.

The government has allocated hundreds of thousands of pounds to local authorities to improve community cohesion.

But there are worrying signs that ministers have taken their eyes off the ball.

Tower Hamlets council has received extensive funding for such projects.

But it has now been revealed that one of the organisations it has given thousands of pounds to is a front for the Muslim Brotherhood called the Cordoba Foundation.

And what was the first thing this organisation did with the money?

It organised a public debate with the title ‘Has Political Participation Failed British Muslims?’

And who did they invite to speak?

The leader of Hizb-ut-Tahrir.

Even the most basic research would reveal that the Cordoba Foundation has close connections to people with extremist views, including Azzam Tamimi, the UK representative of Hamas.

Lord Ahmed cannot claim to have been unaware of the event involving Hizb ut-Tahrir, he took part in it. Here is the flyer (pdf) for the event – Lord Ahmed appears alongside the Scottish Nationalist Party’s Osama Saeed and the Chairman of Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain, Dr Abdul Wahid.

Little wonder, then, that Dominic Grieve QC, the Shadow Home Secretary, (who is still listed as “to be confirmed” on the Cordoba Foundation’s website) will not be turning up. Chris Huhne, the Liberal Democrats’ Home Affairs Spokesman, will also be staying away from the FOI/Cordoba Foundation event, or so Cowley Street sources tell me.

These are not the only times that Lord Ahmed has been cosying up to the Cordoba Foundation, he also joined them for a roundtable at the House of Lords on 26th February of this year to discuss Sudan.

Lord Ahmed and FOI have some other dubious connections. In 2008 Lord Ahmed spoke at Islam Channel’s Global Peace and Unity Event (GPU).

At this event, the All-Party Parliamentary Friends of Islam Group presented Liberal Democrat Simon Hughes with the FOI “Parliamentarian of the Year”, which led the Lib Dems to put out this statement:

Nick Clegg MP, leader of the Liberal Democrats, commented: “This award is richly deserved. Simon has been a tireless campaigner on behalf of Muslims not only in Southwark and Bermondsey but his Parliamentary work has also benefited Muslims across the country.

“The Global Peace and Unity event was an excellent event aimed at developing understanding and appreciation of the Islamic faith. I was proud to see one of my parliamentary team receive such a prestigious award.”

Few people would share Nick Clegg’s assessment of the GPU event, read David T’s take on it here.

The Government is spending millions of pounds on attempts to find out why British Muslims are drawn into extremist politics. In an era in which schoolchildren are being encouraged to engage in violent jihad,  schools are being urged to report students being drawn into extremism. The courts have been full, for the past three years, with terrorist trial after terrorist trial.

Yet it is at events like the Global Peace and Unity Event that British Muslims are being inducted into political and religious extremism.

And, by permitting senior Labour politicians to attend this event, the Government is both encouraging and endorsing this politics.

Lord Ahmed has more dubious connections. He happily works with Cageprisoners, an organisation which organises events featuring Anwar al-Awlaki, one of the leading English-speaking jihadist preachers active at present. He is even quoted in Cageprisoners’ publicity material calling them “a vital artery in the network of international human rights.”

All of these details should probably be set in the context of Lord Ahmed’s own personal views. Here he is comparing Salman Rushdie to holocaust denier David Irving.

And this is how the Times reported Lord Ahmed’s contribution to the debate earlier this year about whether Geert Wilders should be allowed into the UK.

The film screening was originally due to take place in January at the invitation of Baroness Cox, who will chair tomorrow’s discussion of the film. It received strong opposition from Muslim groups and peers such as Lord Ahmed, who supported the Government’s decision to deny Mr Wilders entry.

Lord Ahmed denies allegations in the Spectator that he had “threatened the House of Lords authorities that he would bring a force of 10,000 Muslims to lay siege to the Lords if Wilders was allowed to speak”. Lord Ahmed told The Times that he was considering legal action against the Spectator. A spokesman for the House of Lords did not comment on the allegation.

Lord Ahmed said he had received “dozens if not hundreds of hate mail and threats as a result of Fitna” but told The Times he would not protest the screening of the film in Mr Wilders’ absence.

What is going on when a British peer is organising events with a speaker from the MCB, which the government will not deal with, in the House of Lords with another organisation deemed too extreme to receive government funding?