UK PM Keir Starmer pledges £10m to protect Mosques and Muslim communities after surge in hate crimes

Dubai: UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has pledged an additional £10 million (Dh46.3 million) in security funding to protect Muslim communities from hate crimes and attacks, amid a sharp rise in incidents targeting Muslims and mosques across the country.

Starmer announced the funding after visiting Peacehaven Mosque in East Sussex, which was the target of a suspected arson attack earlier this month, according to The Independent. No one was injured, but the fire damaged the mosque’s front entrance and a car parked nearby. Police are treating the incident as a hate crime and have arrested two people, though no charges have yet been filed.

The new investment will fund enhanced security measures such as CCTV cameras, alarm systems, secure fencing, and on-site security staff for mosques and Muslim faith centres across the UK, the government said.

“Britain is a proud and tolerant country. Attacks on any community are attacks on our entire nation and our values,” Starmer said. “This funding will provide Muslim communities with the protection they need and deserve, allowing them to live in peace and safety. I want a Britain built for all, and my government is committed to delivering safer streets for everyone – that means protecting places of worship from those who seek to divide us through hate and violence.”

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood condemned the Peacehaven attack as “an appalling crime” that could have had “an even more devastating outcome.”

“I am proud of this country because of the rights we all have to follow the faith of our choosing and to live free from hatred and fear,” she said. “That right must be defended. Violence and intimidation directed at any community or faith are attacks on us all. We must stand together against those who seek to divide us.”

During his visit, relatives of a mosque member who narrowly escaped the blaze told the Prime Minister that he has become withdrawn since the incident. “He’s very traumatised,” a family member said. “This mosque was his life.”

“We shouldn’t need security in places of worship, and it’s sad that we do,” Starmer told the congregation. “That (funding) reflects our responsibility—mine, the Home Secretary’s, and your MP’s—to do everything we can to tackle hate crime while expressing our support and solidarity.”

The additional £10 million will bolster the Protective Security for Mosques Scheme, which already provides protection for Muslim community centres and faith schools that have experienced or are vulnerable to hate crimes. It builds on £29.4 million in funding already allocated this year.

According to government figures, anti-Muslim hate crimes rose by 19% in the year ending March 2025, with 44% of all religious hate crimes targeting Muslims.

Akeela Ahmed, chief executive of the British Muslim Trust, welcomed the announcement, saying everyone “deserves to live their life peacefully and without the threat of fear.”

“Sadly, this is not the case for too many members of our Muslim communities,” she said. “They have become fearful and apprehensive as their mosques — places dedicated to faith, love and peace — have been vandalised, set on fire, and worshippers abused and assaulted. This funding will play a key role in helping them feel the safety and reassurance they need and deserve.”