UK gov't pledges 5 mn pounds to fight extremism

British Prime Minister David Cameron has announced that his government will invest 5 million pounds in 2015 for local initiatives, campaigns and charities to counter extremist ideologies.

In a statement released by the government, Cameron said: “We need to systematically confront and challenge extremism and the ideologies that underpin it, exposing the lies and the destructive consequences it leaves in its wake. We have to stop it at the start -- stop this seed of hatred even being planted in people’s minds and cut off the oxygen it needs to grow.”

The government will spend £5 million this year to “build a national network of grassroots organizations to challenge all forms of extremist ideology”, Cameron announced, only a day before the U.K. government’s new Counter-Extremism Strategy.

 “At the heart of the strategy is a new partnership approach to strengthen community resilience and promote a coalition to speak out, challenge and ultimately defeat extremism,” the statement said.

Approximately 3 million Muslims live in the U.K. 

The number of Muslims is expected to reach 5.5 million by 2030.