Pay-off for scouting veteran expelled in hijab row

A SCOUT leader kicked out of the movement for accusing it of promoting Islam and comparing a woman canoeing in a hijab to Darth Vadar has reached an outof-court settlement with the association.

Brian Walker, 62, was expelled from the Scout Association for writing a letter to the official magazine complaining that the movement was moving away from its Christian roots.

Mr Walker, who has been in the scouting movement since the age of 10, wrote of a female leader taking girls canoeing in a hijab: “Hello! Canoeists don’t dress like that.”

He added: “They need all round unobstructed vision so they protect the group, and of course they will most likely drown wearing that Darth Vader tent!”

Mr Walker also complained that in the scouting faith calendar no meaning was attached to Christmas and Easter but that Islam was widely promoted.

He said the organisation should be careful promoting Islam “given the way the religion treats women and their rights”.

The letter was never published, but he was immediately expelled.

Supported by the Christian Legal Centre, Mr Walker appealed in June 2017, claiming he had not meant to offend anyone personally and was making a more general point about scouting generally.

But the decision was upheld, prompting him to bring a legal action for discrimination on the grounds of his Christian beliefs and that the association had breached its own Equal Opportunities Policy.

The Scout movement agreed to settle the case a month after a court hearing in Bristol where a judge refused an application to throw out Mr Walker’s claim.

Reports suggested Mr Walker received an out-of-court settlement of £1,500.

In a statement, Mr Walker said it was “ironic” that chief scout Bear Grylls was known for his Christianity while he was “silenced and dismissed” for a letter that was never published.