Robin Simcox

Senior Visiting Research Fellow @KingsCollegeLon. Senior Associate (Non-Resident) @CSIS. UK Commissioner for Countering Extremism 2021-25.
Likes = bookmarks.

[Robin Simcox @RobinSimcox]

My latest for @CSIS places the current USG push against the Muslim Brotherhood in a wider context and outlines the challenges - but also opportunities - it creates for European governments. https://t.co/zxcFLcgDSL

[CounterExtremism @CEGroupUK]

Last night we had the honour of celebrating this year's Young Leaders in National Security Fellows at the @UKHouseofLords with Lord Carlile and Lord Blunkett.

[CounterExtremism @CEGroupUK]

Day 4 of the Young Leaders in National Security Fellowship has seen lively debates with speakers including Jonathan Hall KC, @RobinSimcox, Sir William Shawcross, @ACCJacques and Poppy Coburn.

[Daniel McFadin @danielmcfadin]

Somebody, somewhere in NYC for whatever reason recorded the New York 1 morning news broadcast on Sept. 11, 2001.

They wound up recording history. It starts at 8:30 a.m. ET.

You get 15 minutes of news from the Before Times.

Then the world changes.

https://t.co/1N3J5Stf1M

[Robin Simcox @RobinSimcox]

In today’s @spectator I look at how a newly aggressive US approach to the Muslim Brotherhood, combined with ongoing UK inaction, is straining the special relationship. https://t.co/IOJqyJNYon

[Robin Simcox @RobinSimcox]

@EFittonBrown 🙏

[Robin Simcox @RobinSimcox]

Discussing IRGC, Muslim Brotherhood, the UK terror threat and much else with @JSchanzer @FDD.

[FDD @FDD]

The UK has criminalized support for one of Tehran's most feared instruments of repression. On today's FDD Morning Brief, @JSchanzer is joined by @RobinSimcox to break down the country's recent designation of the IRGC. https://t.co/yyWSdhoQg5

[CounterExtremism @CEGroupUK]

CEG is saddened to hear of the passing of Sir Alex Younger, former Chief of the Secret Intelligence Service.

Sir Alex was one of our finest public servants. He combined a fierce intellect with an unassuming air & charm. Sir Alex's storied career & unrelenting dedication to keeping our country safe will be much discussed in the days ahead - as it should be.

However his generosity in sharing his time and his wisdom with the next generation may be less well understood. Sir Alex instinctively recognised the need to convey to young people the litany of threats we face. He understood these threats clearly & explained them masterfully as the inaugural patron of our Young Leaders programme.

Our thoughts are with his family at this time.

[Robin Simcox @RobinSimcox]

A pleasure to discuss @burke_jason's latest book, The Revolutionists - a compelling study of terrorism and extremism in the 1970s - at a @CEGroupUK event last night.

[Robin Simcox @RobinSimcox]

In today’s @Telegraph: the politics of the blasphemy belt and what it might mean for the future. https://t.co/vXI4TDk0iB

[Robin Simcox @RobinSimcox]

Antisemitism is an acute problem across the political spectrum. But it is the Islamists and Far Left mainly responsible for the ugly atmospherics government knows it now must address. Some thoughts on the current mess and what next for @thetimes today
https://t.co/QLcZgN3mA1

[The Spectator @spectator]

As Tony Blair contested a third election in 2005, the Labour government’s popularity was in tatters. The divisions in the country were running deep, following a United States-led war in the Middle East.

The general election, held alongside the locals, saw the emergence of new radical political parties. They seized an opportunity to break the two-party consensus by opposing foreign wars and weaponising an increasingly politicised Muslim vote.

Not much is written today about Respect, but it had some success fighting on an anti-Iraq war platform. George Galloway, the party’s leader, won in Bethnal Green and Bow.

Although Respect’s staying power proved limited, what is emerging for next month’s local elections might prove more durable. This time, the left-wing, anti-Labour alliance is built around the Green party and various independent candidates who are cutting deals, forming pacts and encouraging tactical voting, united by the issue of Palestine.

✍️ Robin Simcox

Article | https://t.co/Dl2ImB8I0H

[Robin Simcox @RobinSimcox]

@spectator Of course there are issues beyond Gaza that shape the way people vote. But Gaza retains a unique power at this time to unite various factions who may not otherwise have a lot in common.

[Robin Simcox @RobinSimcox]

I have an article out in tomorrow’s @spectator on the upcoming local elections. It argues that this political moment echoes 2005, when upstart parties threatened to overturn the apple cart by harnessing anger over Iraq. https://t.co/odMGernur7

[Robin Simcox @RobinSimcox]

@spectator For Iraq then, see Gaza today. This time the anti-Labour alliance is built around the Greens and independents. I argue that party loyalty is less fixed than it once was: candidates who had previously campaigned wearing a blue or red rosette are now wearing black, red and green.

[Robin Simcox @RobinSimcox]

In today's @JewishChron. After the latest terrorist attack in Manchester, what next? https://t.co/YLMafEZkug

[Robin Simcox @RobinSimcox]

My thoughts on the Manchester terror attack, antisemitism and today’s protests in the @Telegraph. https://t.co/cryCwK47LV

[Robin Simcox @RobinSimcox]

Some thoughts on the UK’s permissive environment for antisemitism on @BBCNewsnight last night.

[Robin Simcox @RobinSimcox]

The last piece of work I commissioned during my tenure at @CommissionCE explored how to balance counter extremism with defending free speech. Out now with contributions from @JMchangama, @Eric_Heinze_ @LiamSD12, @kafkaswife, @martinbright & many others. https://t.co/wt2hRk5vkI

[Robin Simcox @RobinSimcox]

I have accepted a position as a visiting senior fellow at KCL’s War Studies Department, from where I plan to continue contributing to ongoing public policy debates around extremism and terrorism.

[Robin Simcox @RobinSimcox]

Today is my last day as Commissioner for Countering Extremism and the government’s independent adviser on extremism. It has been a great privilege to help shape consecutive governments’ responses to the range of extremism challenges our country has faced over the past four years.

[Robin Simcox @RobinSimcox]

As outlined in CONTEST, during that time the CCE has become the government’s independent centre of excellence on extremism. Providing forensic, day-to-day scrutiny of government policy is a model that works— and one which I hope will endure.