When Jeremy Browne, the Lib Dem Home Office minister, floated the idea of banning the niqab – the face veil adopted by a certain kind of fundamentalist Muslim – in public places, he called for a “national debate” on the issue.
That debate, however, has largely failed to take place. Even as the appropriateness of the veil has been questioned for a Birmingham school, a London courtroom, and now NHS hospitals, politicians have hemmed and hawed and said that while they can see why people are concerned, ultimately this is a job for whoever runs that particular branch of the public services. [telegraph.co.uk, 19 September] Read more
