United Kingdom: tensions among conservatives after comments on Muslim prayers

A controversy shakes the British Conservative Party after the remarks of Nick Timothy, Shadow Secretary of State for Justice. He described the Muslim prayers organized in Trafalgar Square during an “Open Iftar” as an “act of domination”, even evoking an “Islamist imagination”. Shadow Communities Secretary James Cleverly has distanced himself. He explained that he did not share this analysis. For him, the debate on this event can exist, but he refuses to say that these public prayers are a form of domination.

The situation became tense after the support of the leader of the Conservatives, Kemi Badenoch, for Nick Timothy. This provoked many reactions from the opposition. Keir Starmer has called for his ouster. For his part, Attorney General Richard Hermer questioned the right about its position: would it be the same when faced with prayers of other religions in public spaces? But the criticism does not only come from the opposition. Even within the Conservative Party, certain voices are being raised. Emma Best, Conservative elected official in London, recalled that prayer is “a fundamental right”. She also believes that the event was poorly presented. According to her, most of the participants at this iftar did not pray, and prayer was only a small part of the evening.

This controversy relaunches a broader debate on the place of Islam in the public space in the United Kingdom. Above all, it highlights divisions within the conservatives, between a more identity-based line and the defense of fundamental freedoms.