Seventeen years after Parliament abolished the UK’s outdated blasphemy laws, former immigration minister Robert Jenrick has accused the courts of “bringing it back for Islam” in a blistering attack on what he brands “two-tier justice” in Britain.
The Conservative MP took to X (formerly Twitter) to rail against the conviction of Hamit Coskun, a Kurdish-Armenian atheist who burned a Koran in protest outside the Turkish consulate in London.
Coskun, who was allegedly stabbed, kicked, and spat on in broad daylight by an enraged assailant, now carries a criminal record — while his alleged attacker won’t stand trial until 2027.
Jenrick branded the situation “grotesque,” suggesting that had Coskun burned a Bible outside the Vatican’s embassy while shouting anti-Christian slurs, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) would not have pressed charges — “Would the police even have turned up?” he asked.
Jenrick fumed:
“So it’s free speech for flag-burners, but criminal records for Koran-burners? The double standard could not be starker: this is two-tier justice, made to measure for Two-Tier Keir’s Britain.”
Jenrick also took aim at Prime Minister Keir Starmer, pointing out that Starmer once defended a woman who trampled on the American flag, yet “melts into apparent silence” when it comes to the Coskun case.
“This is the rebirth of a blasphemy law, smuggled in through the back door,” Jenrick warned, citing the CPS’s now-dropped original charge that Coskun had harassed “the religious institution of Islam.”
Though a campaign led by Jenrick and the Free Speech Union reportedly forced prosecutors to abandon that charge, Coskun was still convicted under Section 5 of the Public Order Act — legislation intended to target abusive behaviour in real time, not political protests, Jenrick insisted.
He warned of dire consequences if the precedent is allowed to stand:
“If book-burning during a political protest is re-defined as ‘disorder’, then any vigorous criticism of Islam – or indeed any religion – is at risk.”
The case has sparked concern among free speech advocates, with Conservative Leader Kemi Badenoch stating Coskun’s appeal “must be successful.” Jenrick echoed that sentiment, drawing parallels to the still-hiding Batley Primary School teacher whose life was “shattered” after showing a caricature of the Prophet Mohammed in a lesson.
Jenrick concluded his statement by calling on MPs to back a Bill by his colleague Nick Timothy that aims to ban any revival of blasphemy laws, in any form:
“Ministers who claim to cherish free speech must prove it. Let the Bill progress, or admit they are willing to trade our liberties for the transient comfort of avoiding offence.”
The case has ignited fierce debate over free speech, religious sensitivity, and whether Britain is slipping into a regime where offending one religion is treated more harshly than others.
How’s this for a brexit benefit- UK temporarily spared from Trumps 50% metal tariffs- BBC
Robert Jenrick calls for Lord Hermer to resign