Committee publication · Report · 30 January 2026 · HC 571
Large Print – 10th Report – Discrimination, harassment and abuse against Muslim women
From: Women and Equalities Committee
Inquiry: Gendered Islamophobia
Government response deadline: 30 March 2026
Summary
This Women and Equalities Committee report examines discrimination, harassment and abuse against Muslim women in the UK. It finds Muslim women disproportionately targeted—experiencing 45% of reported religious hate crimes, with gendered and intersectional dimensions. The report calls for media accountability, police training, legislative reform on hate crime recording, and government action on online safety and community support.
Key findings
- Police recorded 4,478 hate crimes against Muslims in year ending March 2025 (45% of religious hate crimes); Tell MAMA recorded over 6,000 incidents in 2024, a 165% increase on 2022, with greater targeting of visibly Muslim people.
- Muslim women disproportionately targeted: in 10 of 12 years of Tell MAMA data women were majority of victims; 70% of verbal harassment and 60% of physical attacks directed at female Muslims; 45% of Muslim women feel unsafe on public transport vs 8% of women nationwide.
- Abuse is gendered and intersectional: Muslim women face 'triple penalty' based on race, faith and gender; visible Muslim dress (hijab, niqab, burka) increases targeting; women targeted for sexual aggression more than men.
- Media and online spaces amplify hatred: false claims about Southport attacker reached 155 million impressions via algorithmic promotion; persistent stereotyping of Muslim women as 'oppressed' or 'extremist' normalises discrimination; inadequate content moderation.
- Abuse occurs within Muslim communities and public institutions: young women seeking autonomy, Muslim feminists, and lesbian Muslims face harassment and accusations of betrayal; barriers to reporting domestic abuse due to fear of community stigma and reinforcing negative narratives about Islam.
Recommendations
- Ensure media and regulators (Ofcom, press watchdog) robustly challenge inaccurate representations and false narratives about Muslim women; review whether Online Safety Act and media self-regulation are fit for purpose in tackling hateful extremism.
- Provide appropriate training for police officers on recognising, recording and responding to hate crimes against Muslim women with understanding of intersectional needs; improve reporting mechanisms and third-party reporting services.
- Implement Law Commission recommendations on improving hate crime legislation; publish new hate crime action plan with tackling intersectional abuse of Muslim women as key priority.
- Regional mayors should lead work with community organisations to raise awareness of reporting services and work with police on responses to reporting spikes.
- Increase government support for community-led grassroots initiatives supporting Muslim women and girls in social and physical activity.
- Schools, healthcare settings and workplaces should establish clear policies recognising and tackling anti-Muslim hate; ensure staff training.
- Introduce section 14 of Equality Act 2010 (protection for groups with two protected characteristics); consider expanding scope to include more than two characteristics.
- Encourage employers to use name-blind job applications to tackle discrimination at recruitment and progression stages.
- Implement law reform requiring civil marriage before religious marriage to safeguard women's financial rights and prevent polygamous marriages; simplify Islamic divorce access.
Tone
CriticalTopics
hate-crimeislamophobiagender-equalitysafeguardingonline-safety
Key actors
Women and Equalities Committee, Tell MAMA (Measuring Anti-Muslim Attacks), Muslim Women's Network UK, Muslim Council of Britain, Runnymede Trust, Dr Shereen Hamed Shaw, Dr Parveen Akhtar, Professor Peter Hopkins
Notable line
“… experience and the fear of experiencing it, leads to self-censoring behaviours and a withdrawal from participation in public life. It has a deeply damaging impact on individual lives and a corrosive effect on community cohesion.”
Key Quotes
“In environments where negative stereotypes about Islam are widespread, such visibility can transform everyday encounters into opportunities for abuse.”
“Muslim women "are often framed in binary terms: either as voiceless victims in need of rescue, or as suspicious figures complicit in extremism".”
“Actual and potential victims may attempt to make themselves as 'invisible' as possible to try and reduce the potential for abuse. A decision not to veil, a decision to reduce travel by foot and public transport, and a decision to avoid visiting specific public places, are all ways of trying to reduce the risk and manage the fear of Islamophobic victimisation.”
“As a Muslim woman, you always have those three barriers, you're a woman, you're probably of ethnic minority and you've got a hijab on [ … ] so that you have to overcome these three barriers before you even speak.”
“You do not have to go down some dark corner of the internet. You just need to open up the comments section of any mainstream news outlet and you will see the comments there.”
“While Islamophobia is often perceived as a problem that originates externally, it is equally important to acknowledge the harassment Muslim women sometimes face from within their own communities.”
“Muslim women often carry a triple burden: enduring societal Islamophobia, intra- community misogyny, and the responsibility of shielding their communities from further vilification.”
Source · parliament.uk record ↗