‘Kill or be killed’ trainer seeks to overturn UK ban to coach Muslim women
US self-defence expert barred from Britain in wake of 2011 riots invited to Birmingham event
AN AMERICAN expert in self-defence who was banned from Britain for promoting vigilante behaviour has applied to return to teach Muslim and Jewish women, as well as female MPs, how to defend themselves from attacks.
Tim Larkin was prevented from travelling to the UK in 2012 by Theresa May, the then home secretary, after he announced a so-called “riot tour” of major cities hit by mass civil disobedience the previous year.
At the time, the Home Office was concerned that his “kill or be killed” training philosophy, which includes inflicting “crippling pain”, could encourage vigilantism.
But a few months ago, Mr Larkin was invited by the Association of British Muslims to attend events in Birmingham and at the House of Commons.
Although the Commons reception, organised by a female Labour MP, has been cancelled, organisers hope the Birmingham event could still go ahead if the Home Office lifts his ban.
Mohammed Abbasi, the co-director of the association, will invite Muslim and Jewish women to a meeting where he hopes Mr Larkin, 54, will be the guest speaker.
Explaining how Mr Larkin is the “world authority on self-defence”, Mr
Abbasi said: “His techniques make some people uncomfortable because it forces us to think of scenarios when we could be killed.
“Terrorists, criminals, murderers and rapists seek to do us harm, but if we don’t think of these scenarios then we cannot prepare for the enemy. The police and security services are not there 24/7 … Mr Larkin’s training teaches us not just that we fight back, but that we carry the battle to them.”
Ismail Amin, Mr Larkin’s attorney in the US, said: “We have written to the Home Office asking them to reconsider his ban. Race attacks underscore the need for Mr Larkin to teach women and the elderly in the UK how to defend themselves.”
Shabana Mahmood, who is defending the Birmingham Ladywood seat for the Labour Party, had booked a Commons meeting room for the association to welcome Mr Larkin to Britain this week. He was also due to meet female MPs to teach them about self-defence following increasing threats to politicians and the 2016 murder of Jo Cox.
A spokesman for Ms Mahmood said: “The room bookings were made at the request of the Association of British Muslims, and after discussion about the event and its attendees with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
“When information regarding Tim Larkin was brought to our attention, the bookings were immediately cancelled. All involvement ended … two and a half months ago.”
Mr Abbasi hopes the application will be processed in time for Mr Larkin to attend the event in Birmingham.
However, letters from Mr Larkin’s legal team to the Home Secretary, seen by The Sunday Telegraph, suggest the process has stalled. It is understood attempts to lift the ban are taking longer than usual due to the election, with Priti Patel, the Home Secretary who would have to sign off any change, being involved in Tory party campaigns.
A Home Office spokesman said it did not comment on individual cases.
In May 2012, Mr Larkin was handed a letter by a Border Agency official at Las Vegas airport as he attempted to board a plane to Heathrow. The Home Office issued the exclusion order after it was decided his arrival would not be “conducive to the public good”.
His bestselling book, How to Survive: The Most Critical Five Seconds of Your Life, describes how to inflict “crippling pain” on assailants and argues the need to use “deadly force”.