This inquiry will examine the drivers of extremism in the UK, with a focus on emerging trends of young people being drawn into extremism, violence and crime through online radicalisation. It will assess whether the Government’s approach is keeping pace with the evolving threat and evaluate the effectiveness of measures such as Prevent in combatting …
| Title | HC No. | Published | Items | Response |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7th Report – Combatting new forms of extremism | HC 903 | 1 Apr 2026 | 12 | Pending |
Extremism is evolving rapidly and becoming more complex. Long-standing terrorist threats remain but new forms of extremism are emerging and give rise to growing concern. The impact of geo-political events is likely to intensify in light of continuing conflict in the Middle East. There has been a marked rise in …
Good policy making relies upon data and evidence. At the moment the UK lacks the evidence base and up-to-date research needed to keep pace with these developments. The impediments to supporting rigorous, independent empirical research have limited our understanding of the extremist threat. This presents challenges for the government, police …
We recommend that the Home Office establishes a coherent, long-term research and evidence programme on emerging forms of extremism. It should ensure that sufficient support and resources are available to enable independent, empirical research to be commissioned, whether by the Home Office itself, the Commission for Countering Extremism or the …
Harmful extremist content is circulating widely online, driven by engagement and profit-maximising algorithms, influencer-led dissemination, and decentralised extremist ecosystems. These systems promote content designed to provoke outrage and fear, often purely for commercial reasons, and the speed and scale of dissemination have outpaced the capacity of moderation and removal tools. …
The Online Safety Act contains gaps that limit government’s ability to address new forms of extremism, particularly when harmful content falls below criminal thresholds. We are concerned that smaller, high-risk platforms are not receiving sufficient regulatory scrutiny. Alongside more robust implementation and enforcement of the Online Safety Act, there is …
The Home Office should engage more closely with the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and Ofcom to ensure effective implementation of measures around online safety for children and to ensure that extremist content is among the types of online harmful content that technology companies are expected to address and …
We welcome the inclusion of enhanced digital and media literacy in the new curriculum. It should be embedded consistently across education settings and equip children with the skills to identify, analyse and scrutinise online 53 content, including the operation of algorithms and AI-generated material. We expect the Home Office to …
The escalation in Prevent referrals involving no clear ideology and no clear signs of radicalisation to terrorism represents a significant challenge to a system designed to address the ideological roots of terrorism. Prevent and Channel are becoming saturated with such individuals, many of whom show no commitment to any particular …
Prevent is poorly adapted to deal with the digital world. We have outlined how online spaces are now central to the radicalisation process, particularly for young people, yet Prevent lacks the specialist knowledge or framework for identifying and assessing credible risk signals from online behaviour. Integration of Prevent into wider …
We recommend that the Home Office makes a clear, specific statement to clarify the role of Prevent in addressing non-ideological cases, and makes any necessary updates to relevant Prevent guidance and training to reflect that position. The government should also set out a plan to anchor Prevent more firmly within …
We have not seen evidence that the Home Office prioritises counter- extremism efforts beyond those which fall within the existing counter- terrorism security infrastructure. (Conclusion, Paragraph 100)
The Home Office should assign greater priority to countering extremism and work alongside the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, other relevant departments, and local authorities to implement the social cohesion strategy. It is vital that the Home Office reviews the suite of counter-extremism measures that sit outside the …
| Date | Witnesses | |
|---|---|---|
| 20 Jan 2026 | Dame Sara Khan DBE · Counter Extremism Commissioner 2018-2021, Dan Jarvis MBE MP · Home Office, Jonathan Emmett · Home Office | View ↗ |
| 25 Nov 2025 | Councillor Sara Conway · Joint Chair of the Local Government Association’s Special Interest Group on Countering Extremism, Dr Jane Horton · University of Liverpool, Kenny Bowie · Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime, Leo Ratledge · Child Rights International Network (CRIN), Professor John Denham · University of Southampton and member of the Bingham Centre for the Rule of Law's Independent Commission on UK Counter-Terrorism Law, Policy and Practice | View ↗ |
| 28 Oct 2025 | Adam Hadley CBE · Tech Against Terrorism, Imran Ahmed · Centre for Countering Digital Hate, Laurence Taylor · Metropolitan Police, Milo Comerford · Institute for Strategic Dialogue, Paul Giannasi OBE · National Police Chiefs' Council | View ↗ |
| 15 Jul 2025 | Dr Daniel Allington · King's College London, Dr Joe Whittaker · Swansea University, Lord Anderson KC, Interim Independent Prevent Commissioner, Professor Laura G. E. Smith · Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Robin Simcox · Commission for Countering Extremism | View ↗ |
| Date | Direction | Title |
|---|---|---|
| 4 Feb 2026 | To cttee | Letter from the Security Minister following his appearance on 20 Januaury relat… |