Wes Streeting accused of ignoring Islamophobia in the NHS

The British Islamic Medical Association (BIMA) has written a letter to Wes Streeting and other senior figures in UK healthcare to urge action against a pattern of Islamophobic attacks on Muslim staff and patients in the NHS.

BIMA also highlighted the complete lack of response from Streeting and NHS chief executive James Mackey regarding their previous efforts to raise the alarm on Islamophobia.

Islamophobia in the NHS

This apparent lack of concern is particularly galling given that Labour recently launched an investigation into racism in the NHS which appears to privilege antisemitism over other forms of racism.

In particular, BIMA called attention to an Islamophobic incident at Leeds Teaching Hospitals. Earlier this month, a copy of the Qur’an and a framed chapter of the text were damaged in the Bexley Wing Faith Centre.

Leeds NHS CEO Brendan Brown stated at the time that:

these acts here are Islamophobic and have no place at the trust.

BIMA has wrote to Streeting’s Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), NHS England, and Leeds Teaching Hospitals to demand appropriate actions.

Even before the desecration in Leeds, BIMA had already raised their concerns with the DHSC. It called attention to issues with Islamophobia, staff safety, and the hierarchy of racism in Labour’s NHS anti-racism plans. And yet, neither Streeting nor Mackey has deigned to reply.

‘Deep distress to Muslim staff and patients’

On 4 December, BIMA president Dr. Sahira Dar wrote similar letters to both Streeting and Mackey. The letter to Streeting stated:

I am writing to express our growing concern that we have still not recieved a response to our previous correspondence on 20th October 2025 or our meeting on 9th September regarding the safety, fair treatment and freedom of expression of Muslim healthcare workers. This lack of urgency and movement is increasingly difficult to reconcile with, especially in light of a serious Islamophobic incident reported at Leeds Teaching Hospitals, where a copy of the Qur’an was desecrated on NHS premises.

This appalling act has caused deep distress to Muslim staff and patients. It is part of a pattern of incidents impacting Muslims within the NHS, and highlights precisely why we have raised these issues with you: many of our members already feel unsafe, unsupported and vulnerable in their workplaces, particularly following last year’s racist and Islamophobic riots and the hostile public climate we drew to your attention. Such incidents are not isolated; they are connected to a wider pattern of Islamophobia that must be recognised and addressed with urgency.

That previous correspondence on 20 October (or 15, in Mackey’s case) responded to Labour’s planned review into antisemitism and other forms of racism in the NHS. BIMA also wrote to Lord Mann, who will lead the review itself.

At the time, BIMA stated that it welcomed the government’s “zero-tolerance” attitude to antisemitism. However, it also urged that the NHS must do more to address all forms of racism. That includes Islamophobia, anti-Blackness, and anti-Palestinian racism. BIMA stated that:

Evidence shows that hate incidents are rising within the NHS, impacting minority staff and contributing to ongoing disparities in career progression and attainment.

When Labour announced the review, a coalition of healthcare workers criticised the fact that it appeared to position antisemitism as more important than racism. It also criticised the election of Lord John Mann to lead the official review. Mann regularly conflates anti-Zionism with antisemitism, and names antisemitism as “the worst of racisms”.

‘Fundamental to these values’

BIMA ended their most recent letters with a reminder that:

The NHS constitution commits the service and its leaders to uphold respect, dignity, inclusion and safety for all staff. Ensuring that Muslim workers and patients can engage with the NHS without fear, while trusting that discriminatory behaviour will be taken seriously and responded to transparently is fundamental to these values.

It then reiterated the organisation’s desire to meet with both Streeting and Mackey to continue their discussions. Likewise, it expressed its extreme disappointment with the lack of communication over the months from both parties.

The fact that Streeting, the DHSC, Mackey and NHS England apparently can’t even be bothered to meet with BIMA to discuss Islamophobia in the NHS is extremely telling. When Labour says it wants to “tackle all forms of racism”, it’s quite clear that some forms of racism don’t count.

Featured image via the Canary