Labour has reportedly scrapped the formal definition of Islamophobia and replaced it with the term “anti-Muslim hate,” triggering anger from Muslim communities and civil-rights groups who say the move weakens the fight against discrimination at a moment of rising hostility.

According to The Telegraph, the decision followed internal concerns that the 2019 All-Party Parliamentary Group definition could stifle free speech or resemble a “blasphemy law.” Former Conservative minister Dominic Grieve, who oversaw the review, confirmed that both “Islamophobia” and “Muslimness” were removed from the new draft.

Communities Secretary Steve Reed has already signalled he would reject any language that “impacted free expression,” insisting he will not “bring in blasphemy laws by the back door.” For many Muslims, this episode reflects a deeper refusal by political leaders to acknowledge Islamophobia as a structural problem in Britain.

Advocacy groups say substituting the term waters down its meaning and ignores decades of evidence documenting systemic bias in policing, workplaces, schools and the media. The government has so far declined to confirm or comment on the reports.

Meanwhile, anti-Muslim hate continues to surge. Recent figures show Muslims remain the most targeted religious group in the country, with 3,866 offences recorded in the year ending March 2024 — a 19 percent rise. Monitoring group Tell Mama logged 6,313 additional incidents in 2024, a 43 percent increase, noting that for the first time, more Muslim men than women were targeted.

Analysts say this climate is being fuelled by the rapid rise of Nigel Farage’s Reform UK and the mainstreaming of far-right rhetoric. That shift was laid bare on 13 September 2025, when more than 110,000 far-right demonstrators, led by Tommy Robinson, marched through London in what researchers believe was the largest event of its kind in modern British history.

Violence erupted, 26 police officers were injured, and speakers openly described Islam as “the enemy of Europe,” rhetoric once confined to fringe online spaces but now aired confidently on Britain’s streets.

From mosques being vandalised to Muslims being harassed in public, many communities say the hostility they face is no longer isolated or hidden — it is becoming normalised. Critics warn that if the government continues to frame Islamophobia merely as a “free speech issue,” it risks legitimising hatred and allowing fear and exclusion to shape the country’s future.