Reform UK is using a Senedd debate to claim face coverings are “against British values”, a move that a Plaid Cymru Member of the Senedd has condemned as divisive politics dressed up as concern for public safety.
Zaynub Akbar, MS for Caerdydd Ffynnon Taf, said the debate, which will not be followed by a vote and will change nothing, is designed to isolate Muslim women and set communities against one another. The Senedd has no power to ban what anyone wears in public; Westminster would need to make the criminal law to do so.
Reform UK's position on face coverings
Reform UK may insist the debate is about stopping criminals from hiding their faces, yet its own words tell a different story. This month, Reform UK’s Deputy Leader in Wales, Laura Anne Jones MS, told Facebook followers that the party's position was "clear: ban the burqa and every other full-face covering in public”.
The debate’s own title claims face coverings are “against British values”. Announcing today’s debate, Jason O’Connell MS said British values “include mutual respect, individual liberty and the rule of law”. Akbar questioned where the respect is in singling out Muslim women, and where the liberty is in telling them what to wear.
Equality Act protections and hate crime figures
Religion and sex are both protected characteristics under the Equality Act. Those protections exist because a fair society does not single people out for their faith or their gender. Reform UK’s debate does both, Akbar said.
On Sunday night, ITV showed how Reform UK talks when it thinks nobody is listening. Its undercover investigation filmed councillors and campaigners describing Asian families as “parasites” and speaking about female colleagues in crude, degrading sexual terms. One would-be Reform UK candidate said being Muslim and British is “like oil and water”.
Home Office figures published this month show that religious hate crimes against Muslims in England and Wales rose by almost 15% in a year, and that Muslims were targeted in almost half of all religious hate crimes.
Existing powers and calls for devolution
Police can already require someone to remove a face covering if they believe it hides their identity, in areas where they expect crime or disorder. Councils can use public spaces protection orders to tackle antisocial behaviour. The powers Reform claims to want already exist, Akbar noted.
Akbar said a serious opposition would bring forward serious ideas, such as tackling poverty, children leaving school without the skills they need, the loss of youth services, and violence against women and girls. Plaid Cymru is tackling those causes, in government and in communities, she said, and that is why the party wants justice devolved, so Wales makes decisions about policing in Wales.
Akbar said she has challenged this kind of dog whistle politics before. In June, after a Reform UK MS used inflammatory language, she led a walkout because remaining in their seats would have signalled acceptance.
Reform UK will get its cheap social media clips today, Akbar said. She said she will speak up, and she knows she will not be alone.
