The grand Cadogan Hall in Sloane Square was emblazoned in a social debate this week which has spilt out into the public press and injured relations between significant media agencies and public groups.

 

In an animated public debate which was held before a live audience and streamed across the BBC tensions flared between the affirmative team of Muslim spokesman Tariq Ramadan and former Dutch diplomat Petra Stienen and the negative of Danish journalist Flemming Rose and social cohesion spokesman Douglas Murray, as they bitterly contested wits over the topic “Europe is failing its Muslims.”

 

The debate stuck a particuarly sour and personal note when Murray, the controversial head of the Centre for Social Cohesion, was requested by the chairperson of the debate Zeinab Badawi to withdraw comments he had made about Dr Muhammad Abdul Bari, secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB).

 

Murray observed during one of his arguments that Dr Bari condoned the very contentious punishment of stoning which prompted Badawi, a news presenter for the BBC, to interrupt him and claim that his position was wrong.

 

Talking to the Evening Standard after the debate Murray reafirmed his belief in his former statement, saying “Muhammad Abdul Bari said he did in a 2007 interview with the Daily Telegraph — it’s on record.”

 

While it has been revealed that Dr Bari did make this statement speculation exists as to whether he was speaking metaphorically for a position of disapproval.

 

Badawi’s insistence upon Murray’s retraction seemed to have tempered him as he speculated afterwards that the BBC was scared of sensitive comments about the Islamic population and its leaders. “I think the BBC is scared, after it paid £30,000 to the MCB after Charles Moore’s comments on Question Time, which it didn’t need to,” he said.

 

In March last year columnist Charles Moore made impassioned comments against the MCB whilst upon a panel on the BBC programme Question Time which led to significant public condemnation. Following remonstration from the MCB, the BBC paid out the sum of £30,000 to the organisation along with an apology.

 

Reportedly Moore’s comments had insulted Dr Bari to such a degree that he refused to attend the post-debate function to which he had been invited.

 

Martin Rose, project director of the venture Our Shared Europe, the host project of the Sloane Square Debate, hinted his satisfaction that all the speakers in some way represented solidarity in liberalist views and intentions.

 

As the 800 members of the audience were invited to vote, there was a reported air of equivocation, however the final result saw the negative team emerge the more convincing team on the night, winning 100 more votes.