I used to be unequivocally pro-multiculturalism. How naive I was

We have not created a harmonious melting pot, but a society where prejudices and tensions can fester

Just one day before the October 7 terrorist attack, I tweeted that Conservatives should stop bashing multiculturalism. In the five months since, however, it has become clear that Britain is not the success story I naively believed it to be. Extremist ideologies have been celebrated on our streets. Minority communities have been targeted. And our failure to confront the root causes of division has become all too apparent.

The nation’s silent majority have watched in horror as protests descended into platforms for hate speech. As posters were vandalised with swastikas and mobs chanted anti-Semitic slogans, often without any understanding of their true meaning. Not all movements for justice, we know now, are inherently just.

Multiculturalism is not working. It has failed to counter extremist ideologies. It has failed to uphold shared values such as democracy, human rights, tolerance and peaceful coexistence. For too long, we believed that embracing “diversity” without considering how different cultures, beliefs and rights might collide, would deliver harmonious integration and social cohesion. It didn’t, and it won’t, until we fix the underlying factors which lead some to be radicalised.

And this now poses a security risk. Islamism makes up 75 per cent of the counter-terrorism caseload, yet for too long we have shied away from acknowledging the true nature of this threat. It should have been obvious that allowing organisations like Hamas to garner support within multicultural societies would create fertile ground for radicalisation and undermine efforts to combat terrorism. There has been a 589 per cent increase in the number of anti-Semitic incidents following October 7. The Community Security Trust, which monitors anti-Jewish abuse and attacks, said the increase was a “watershed moment”. As a result, it is surely necessary to reevaluate whether Britain really is a poster child for multiculturalism. There are, clearly, prejudices and tensions in our society which have been allowed to fester.

Policymakers need a fundamental change in approach. In a speech in September 2023, then Home Secretary Suella Braverman repeated what David Cameron indicated in 2011 – that multiculturalism has failed. She was right, though I may not have agreed with her at the time. Her warning should have served as a call to action for policymakers and communities alike to tackle the challenges posed by extremism and intolerance and to work towards a more inclusive and harmonious society.

But it took another wake-up call for us to treat this seriously: the recent by-election in Rochdale, where campaigns were stained by sectarianism and accusations of intimidation. It exposed the deep-seated divisions within society, exacerbated by policies that prioritise cultural diversity above all else. At the time, anti-Semitic slogans were projected onto Big Ben and a Parliamentary debate was shut down. Warnings were issued that MPs did not feel they could speak freely, or best represent their constituents, for fear of personal attacks.

In response the Conservative Party has proposed a new definition of extremism, but this is not enough. As the former immigration minister Robert Jenrick has stressed, migrant numbers will need to come down.

I remain steadfast in my belief in the value of immigration. Growing up with a mother who moved to the UK in search of a better life, I have seen firsthand the resilience, determination and cultural richness that immigrants can bring to their communities. Embracing people from different countries and cultures has become an integral part of Britain’s identity and history.

I don’t know whether my views on multiculturalism were naïve or immature – it was a strongly held belief based on trust and well-established values. But the scales have fallen from my eyes, so now here we are.