Prime Minister attacks NUS for involvement with Muslim extremists

21 Jul 2015 News

Prime Minister David Cameron has condemned the National Union of Students for choosing to “ally” itself with a group that has been linked with Muslim extremism, a claim that the student body strongly denies.

Prime Minister David Cameron has condemned the National Union of Students for choosing to “ally” itself with a group that has been linked with Muslim extremism, a claim that the student body strongly denies.

Cameron made the comments yesterday as he set out his plans to address extremism at a school in Birmingham. But the NUS said his comments were “misleading”.

Cameron said that the NUS had a relationship with Cage, an organisation which conducted an hour-long press conference to defend Mohammed Emwazi, believed to be the Islamic State executioner known as Jihadi John.

Cameron said the relationship “shamed” the organisation and its “noble history of campaigning for justice”.

In the speech, Cameron said that universities need to do more to combat extremism, mentioning new “narrowly targeted powers to enable [government] to deal with these facilitators and cult leaders, and stop them peddling their hatred” as part of the Extremism Bill.

Cameron said: “I want to say something to the National Union of Students. When you choose to ally yourselves with an organisation like Cage, which called Jihadi John a “beautiful young man” and told people to “support the jihad” in Iraq and Afghanistan, it really does, in my opinion, shame your organisation and your noble history of campaigning for justice.”

Cameron was referring to when the NUS was accused of working with Cage in March of this year, when the union voted to oppose the government’s counter-terrorism bill.

But the NUS said yesterday that it has previously “categorically stated” that it will not work with advocacy group Cage.

But the NUS said yesterday that it has previously “categorically stated” that it will not work with advocacy group Cage.

The NUS issued a statement which said: "In response to the misleading comments made by the Prime Minister this afternoon, NUS wants to make it very clear that, as previously and categorically stated, we will not work with CAGE in any capacity," the charity said.

The NUS said it had written to the Home Secretary in order to specifically clarify this situation and received a letter from the Home Office sent to NUS on 12 June 2015 which read:

“We note the clarification that the NUS have no relationship with Cage, formal or informal, and will not be establishing any relationship with Cage.”

Cage responds

Cage announced last month that it would be taking the Charity Commission to the High Court for “exceeding its role” after charities said the regulator had pressurised them to stop funding the group.

In a statement yesterday, Cage said that “David Cameron’s counter-terrorism agenda will create more distrust and alienation among British Muslims and an atmosphere in which political dissent is criminalised”.

It said that “Cameron’s assertions that Cage is an extremist organisation are false”, and that the organisation is seeking legal advice regarding “possible defamation action given the deliberate attempt to malign a small NGO”.