Prevent ‘very ineffective’ in dealing with political extremism – Dominic Grieve

Former attorney general Dominic Grieve said anti-radicalisation scheme Prevent is “very ineffective” in dealing with political extremism and young people “fixated on violence” without a specific ideology.

It comes after a three-year review found that counter-terrorism measures including the law used to ban Palestine Action and Prevent are being used too widely.

The Independent Commission on UK Counter-Terrorism Law, Policy and Practice found that the current official definition of terrorism is too broad and “extends beyond acts of violence or serious threat, creating uncertainty and overreach in its application”.

Speaking at the launch of the report at the Royal United Services Institute (Rusi) in London on Tuesday, Mr Grieve said “targeting Prevent and using it properly” was crucial.

The former chairman of the Intelligence and Security Committee added: “There are people with extreme views who are not terrorists, and part of the problem is that I don’t think they’re tackling that issue correctly.”

Discussing Prevent, Mr Grieve, who was on the commission, added: “It is very ineffective in dealing with political extremism, and it is very ineffective in dealing with young people who don’t have ideologies and have become fixated on violence.”

Sir Declan Morgan KC, chairman of the commission, said Prevent should focus on those who pose a “significant risk to public safety through potential terrorist activities, rather than those who express ideas judged to be extreme, albeit lawfully”.

Sir Declan, a former Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland, added: “The needs of those where susceptibility to terrorism is not identified will be addressed by other agencies who would allocate specific responsibility for dealing with the case to an appropriate person.

“There is a need for clarity and certainty of which actions for which purposes cross into terrorism.

“Given the consequences for those held to be involved in terrorism, it is essential that the law is both accessible and foreseeable.”

The commission made a total of 113 recommendations, including greater powers for the independent reviewer of counter-terrorism laws.

Sir Declan said the commission had recommended the Government publish a new national social cohesion strategy that “establishes social cohesion as a strategic priority for national government and local authorities”.

The commission also wants rules put in place to ban the removal of citizenship for those born British or registered British as children, and restricting its removal for naturalised adults.

The estimated 55 to 72 British men, women and children who remain in Syria having travelled there during the civil war should also be brought back to the UK, the report found.

Sir Declan said ensuring equal citizenship was “vital for social cohesion in our diverse society”.

The commission chairman added that citizenship should be “secure” and “not deprivable for people who have British citizenship or children registered as British”.

Professor Hilary Pilkington said “we have lost a lot of trust in communities over the Prevent programme”.

The professor of sociology at the University of Manchester added: “The whole of society has to live better together and that requires social cohesion for all communities.”

In the report published on Tuesday, the commission said: “Terrorism should be defined narrowly as acts intended to coerce, compel, or subvert government or an international governmental organisation, and the threshold for property damage should apply only to conduct causing serious risk to life, national security, or public safety, or involving arson, explosives, or firearms.”

It said that measures used to ban groups such as Palestine Action should be restricted so that they are only used to protect the public from terrorism, and that proscription of terror groups should lapse after five years unless renewed.

The commission wants increased parliamentary scrutiny of decisions to proscribe groups, and for suspects to only be charged under section 12 or 13 of the Terrorism Act, which cover support for banned groups, “where there is clear intent to commit the offence”.

Responding to the report, Dr Jessica White, Rusi’s acting director of terrorism and conflict studies, said: “Today’s terrorism exists in an ecosystem of threats from a range of actors and groups, including state and non-state.

“It is not easy to define the boundaries of violent extremism from other forms of violence and hate that can incite acts of terrorism, especially in the blurred reality of today’s on/off-line existence.

“This makes it more important than ever, as the findings note, that we ensure Prevent efforts are understanding and responding to the communities they serve, especially the identity factors such as gender, race, and religion that are being weaponised to radicalise and incite violence.”

Officials have seen a surge in referrals to Prevent in the wake of the Southport murders, and are expecting a record total this year.

Figures released last week showed there were 8,778 referrals of individuals to the anti-extremism scheme in 2024/25 – up 27% from 6,922 in the previous year, according to Home Office data.

The 3,287 referrals in January-March 2025 is the highest number in a single quarter since data began.

The commission said that those involved in potential terror plots against the UK are “increasingly younger and may be driven by complex mixes of ideology, grievance, and personal vulnerability”.