Mohammad Ali Rafique

Scientist by vocation, boardgame geek by choice!

*All views expressed are my own and not the views of my employer.*

[GET A GRIP @docrussjackson]

🚨 Muslims Taking Over the UK?

An important message from Shah Lalon Amin, group director of award-winning Delhi 6 street food group, who in 2023 won the Curry King title at the inaugural Nation's Curry Awards.

“I never thought I’d have to write this. But I keep seeing people say Muslims are trying to take over the UK, bring in Sharia law, or push the country toward civil war. And I know some of that fear feels real. So I’m speaking plainly, not to argue, not to attack, just to bring this back to reality.

This is not a Muslim-majority country. It is a parliamentary democracy and a country with Christian heritage. Laws are made by elected representatives. Muslims make up around 6–7% of the population in a country of roughly 70 million people. There is no legal, political, or demographic pathway for replacing British law with any religious law. That isn’t secretly unfolding. It isn’t slowly building. It isn’t a hidden long-term plan.

The average Muslim in Britain does not spend their time plotting political change. There are no secret strategy meetings. No takeover conversations. No coordinated agenda. And no, we don’t have some secret WhatsApp group discussing who’s arriving by boat next week. The only WhatsApp groups we have are about exam results, family gossip, and who’s bringing dessert for Ramadan.

When Muslims get together, the conversations are painfully ordinary. Football results. Who’s top of the league. Ronaldo vs Messi debates. The cost of living. Mortgage rates. Trump being unpredictable. Children’s school reports. Business worries. Holiday plans. During Ramadan, it’s fasting and food. That’s the reality. That’s because we are British, our daily lives look very similar to the average person in this country.

What people call “Sharia courts” in the UK are religious councils that mostly deal with marriage and divorce paperwork or mediation. They cannot override British courts. They cannot enforce criminal punishments. They cannot replace Parliament. If anything conflicts with UK law, UK law wins every single time. It’s no different in principle from Jewish Beth Din courts that handle religious matters within British law. Religious arbitration exists under the legal system. It does not replace it.

Yes, many asylum arrivals are young men. Dangerous journeys are often made by the strongest family member first so they can seek safety and claim asylum and if approved, reunite with their families legally. This pattern has been seen throughout migration history.

Wanting secure borders is reasonable. Wanting efficient processing is reasonable. Criminal behaviour should be punished. But that’s immigration policy, not proof of a coordinated religious invasion.

Sometimes I hear people say, “We want our country back,” or “We just want to protect our country.” I understand that feeling. Wanting safety, stability, and a sense of identity isn’t wrong. But Britain hasn’t been taken. It hasn’t been stolen. It’s still here. Its laws, institutions, culture, and democracy are intact. Protecting a country doesn’t mean hating your neighbours, it means upholding fairness, rule of law, and shared values.

There is no secret Muslim lobby running Westminster. British Muslims are not politically unified, do not vote as one bloc, and do not answer to a central authority. Most British Muslims are doing what everyone else is doing: working, paying taxes, raising children, worrying about bills, hoping their kids succeed, wanting safe streets and a stable country. We don’t want to change Britain into something else. We are part of Britain.

You can want law and order. You can want borders controlled. You can want your country protected. That’s fair.

But if anti-Muslim panic exists on your screen and nowhere in your real life, that’s not society—that’s an algorithm selling you fear.” 🇬🇧

[Dr Rob @rob_heighton]

"Bedford Borough Council holds no authority over the Council of Nicaea" is one for the ages

[Fraser Nelson @FraserNelson]

Immigration is now back under control - and could hit net-zero in 2026.

My hunch: that those concerned about immigration will not welcome this news (see comments below). It ruins a story of failure.

But can Starmer counter with a story of success?

I discuss with Kate McCann on Times Radio...

[VHBio @VHBio]

Just published: 𝗠𝗶𝗰𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗺 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀: 𝗔𝗱𝘃𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗛𝗦𝗖𝗧 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗡𝗚𝗦

Read the white paper and comparative literature review by @alirafiqueuk: https://t.co/0x824Uwmc9

[VHBio @VHBio]

As the year comes to a close, we wanted to take a moment to thank our partners for your continued support and for the trust you place in us.

On behalf of everyone at VH Bio, we wish you and your colleagues a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

[Tadhg @TadhgHickey]

When your kid finds out the truth

(Feat. the brilliant Sophia Natasha McNamara)

[Dr Dan Goyal @danielgoyal]

In 2006 there were 167,000 NHS England hospital beds

Now there are 130,000

In 2006 there were 33,000 GPs

Now there are 28,000

But sure, the problem is the “NHS model”, and sure, Reform’s insurance based model will sort it.

Ps. I have some magic beans for sale

[Canary @TheCanaryUK]

Up and down the country, billionaires have been cruelly targeted by @TheGreenParty @ZackPolanski for simply being incredibly rich. This heartless abuse needs to stop, now. Here's how you can help our campaign, Billionaires In Need 🥺

[Marina Purkiss @MarinaPurkiss]

A woman is killed by a man every 3 days in the UK...

78% are murdered by a partner/ex

Yet not once have I heard Reform talk about this

Not once have I heard them back measures to protect women’s safety

In fact, they voted against them

So ask yourself...

Why the concern for women only when the perpetrator is a migrant?

[Harry Eccles @Heccles94]

I for one, quite like having human rights.

I also quite like that we all have them.

I'm deeply suspicious of anyone who would try to take them away.

[Neena Jha @DrNeenaJha]

“I’m Jewish & I’m pro-Palestinian. Supporting Palestinian rights isn’t antisemitic, it’s pro humanity.”

We’ve waited years for this….a leader with common sense, humanity & moral fortitude.

It’s clear that a vote for @ZackPolanski is a vote for equality & peace 💚

[Ben Cohen @YoBenCohen]

Unilever / Magnum stopped Ben & Jerry’s from creating a flavor for Palestine — so I’m doing it
myself.
I’ve got a watermelon, an empty pint, and I need your help:
Name the flavor or suggest ingredients
Or design the pint packaging
Tag @yobencohen, @MagnumGlobal use #JusticeforPalestine to submit
Use your voice when Ben & Jerry’s can’t — to secure peace, justice, and dignity in Palestine
#FreeBenandJerrys

[Harry Eccles @Heccles94]

We are not spending too much on welfare

We are refusing to tax the rich

We are refusing to invest in the public

We are choosing neoliberalism

[VHBio @VHBio]

Excited for tonight! ✨💚

[Harry Eccles @Heccles94]

Seen as #BBCLauraK won't interview @ZackPolanski - can we share this video 10,000 times so everyone can see it?

[Adrian Hilton @Adrian_Hilton]

In Britain, we believe in freedom of religion, and freedom of worship. The Carnegie Library in Abergavenny is grade ii listed and has been empty for a decade. Muslims are currently meeting in the parish hall of the local Roman Catholic church, and would like their own place. The council has democratically agreed a 30-year lease, with building repairs to be carried out by the local Muslim community. If you don't want your library turned into a mosque, go there and read. If you don't want your church turned into a mosque, go there and worship. But to do neither, and then complain about a perfectly reasonable, democratic and provisional change of use for a listed building which satisfies a community need, bringing life where there is currently a void, is rather small-minded.

[Darren Jones MP @darrenpjones]

When Reform promise you everything you could have wished for, remember to ask them this important question: how?

[Politics UK @PolitlcsUK]

🚨 NEW: Kemi Badenoch: "The Govt is recruiting a new Chief Inspector of borders who lives in Finland & wants to WFH, this is not serious"

Starmer: "He was appointed in 2019 by the last Govt, then worked from Finland for 5 years. He’ll now be working from the UK full time" #PMQs

[Dr Rachel Clarke @doctor_oxford]

These stats, just released, are a national scandal.

Over 15,000 doctors applied to GP training this year.

Yet @NHSEngland is letting only 4000 of them do so.

Yes. That’s 11k potential new GPs lost to the NHS - when we’re crying out for GPs.

Many replaced with PAs - madness.

[Farrukh @implausibleblog]

Left: Nigel Farage claims that the Speaker's Office and the Parliamentary Securty told him not to hold in-person surgeries on grounds of security concerns

Right: Nigel Farage admits he lied about the Speaker's Office and the Parliamentary Securty telling him not to hold in-person surgeries on grounds of security concerns