The first discussion took place during the launch event, when more than 60 people took part in round-table discussions on topics affecting communities.

The sessions were largely closed to the public, and the Religion Media Centre was invited to observe discussions.

Conflicting opinions were often shared, with many members returning to the issue of accountability alongside the importance of “looking inward”. Discussing social mobility, participants spoke of the need for mentorship, and the issue of lower-paid work. Others added that the community “can’t keep blaming Islamophobia”.

“It’s often people within your own community that will bring you down,” one said on the importance of collaboration.
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Read more at Religion Media Centre.

An organisation has been launched to serve as a bridge between Muslim communities and UK policy-makers. The British Muslim Network seeks to fills a void of 17 years after successive governments failed to engage with the Muslim Council of Britain, which was founded for the same purpose.

The British Muslim Network (BMN) was launched in London when 60 people began by taking part in round-table discussions on social mobility, storytelling, Islamophobia, philanthropy, community infrastructure and health and wellbeing.

The discussions were followed by a large reception with about 300 people, speeches from government officials including the health secretary, Wes Streeting; the deputy Commons Speaker, Nusrat Ghani; faith minister Lord Khan; and a former faith minister, Baroness Warsi.

​Read more at Religion Media Centre.

The launch event attracted several high-profile figures, including Conservative peer Baroness Sayeeda Warsi and Health Secretary Wes Streeting.

Other notable attendees included Brendan Cox, widower of murdered Labour MP Jo Cox, Labour’s faith minister Lord Wajid Khan, British Army imam Asim Hafiz, and Conservative MP Nusrat Ghani.

Critics say the BMN lacks grassroots Muslim credibility and feel some figures associated with the group are too close to the establishment and unlikely to challenge authorities on pressing Muslim issues.

​Read more at Islam Channel.

The Labour Party “hasn’t always got it right” when trying to engage with Muslim communities in recent years, Wes Streeting has conceded, pledging to end more than a decade of failures by successive governments.

The former Tory minister Baroness Warsi suggested a “policy of disengagement” pursued by ministers since the late 2000s may finally be coming to an end after the launch of the British Muslim Network this week.

Brendan Cox, the charity chief who has helped to bring the body together, said the attendance of Streeting, the health secretary, and Lord Khan of Burnley, the faith minister, at the network’s launch event marked a “really significant” turning point.

Read more at The Times.

Prominent British Muslims in politics, media, business and sport have come together to influence government policy on behalf of 4 million British Muslims.

The minister for faith Wajid Khan, the Tory MP and deputy speaker Nusrat Ghani, the former Conservative party chair Sayeeda Warsi, the broadcaster Mishal Husain, the ex-England cricketer Azeem Rafiq and the anti-racism group Hope Not Hate are backing the newly formed British Muslim Network (BMN).
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The Muslim Council of Britain has been the main representative body for Muslims for about 30 years, but successive governments have had a policy of “non-engagement” with the MCB dating back over a decade.

Read more at The Guardian.

The founder of a new organisation set up to represent British Muslims in public life has told Byline Times that it is needed to change the status quo in which followers of the Islamic faith are frequently only featured in policy and media discussions, on issues of extremism, counter-terrorism and Islamophobia. 

The British Muslim Network (BMN) is a new association launched today (25 February) following “extensive consultation” with Muslims across the country over the past year.

Co-chair Akeela Ahmed MBE, a social entrepreneur and equality campaigner, says the primary motivation for creating the BMN is a recognition that Government engagement with British Muslims has been “inconsistent” and “lacks depth,” limiting Muslim voices in national conversations to specific topics.

​Read more at Byline Times.

Akeela Ahmed, co-chair of the British Muslim Network, tells the Today show's Jonny Dymond that the MCB is only 'one group working in this space'.

Listen at Today on BBC Radio 4.

Prominent British Muslims are backing a new national body that will speak to the government about issues affecting the UK's Muslim communities.

Called the British Muslim Network, it is co-founded by Julie Siddiqi, a well-known interfaith and women's campaigner, sources familiar with the organisation told The National. 

Its aim is to provide a fresh platform to address issues such as rising anti-Muslim hate, with a stronger appeal to the mainstream than existing groups, one source said.
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​Read more at The National.

A new body that hopes to lobby the government on issues affecting Muslims across areas including education, healthcare and the criminal justice system is set to launch next month — and insists it won’t seek to rival the Muslim Council of Britain.

The British Muslim Network (BMN) will officially go live in London on 25 February with a series of roundtables inviting participants from across England to share their expertise on the challenges facing Muslims across a variety of sectors.
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The network, which will initially cover England only, has been set up by a core group of about 20 people, according to co-founder Akeela Ahmed — who previously chaired the government’s Anti-Muslim Hatred Working Group. Other members include Imam Asim Hafiz, an adviser at the Ministry of Defence; Syima Aslam, the CEO of Bradford Literature Festival; and Julie Siddiqi, founder of Together We Thrive, a Muslim women’s network.

Read more at Hyphen. 

Mishal Husain and Baroness Warsi are among the big-name backers of a new national body being set up to provide a mainstream public voice for Britain’s Muslim communities that can liaise with the government.

It will be called the British Muslim Network and will be launched next month with support from Warsi, the crossbench peer who was the first Muslim cabinet member. 
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Husain, a former presenter on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, who will host a new show with Bloomberg this year, will not be a formal part of the network but is understood to be supportive of it.

Read more at The Times (UK)