Abuse towards mosque leads to extra police patrols

Planning permission for the South Lakes Islamic Centre was granted in 2022

Police patrols are being stepped up following a rise in online abuse directed against the construction of a new mosque.

The South Lakes Islamic Centre in Dalton-in-Furness in Cumbria is being spearheaded by a group of Muslim doctors at Barrow's Furness General Hospital.

Last month, UKIP leader Nick Tenconi filmed himself visiting the site and shouting "traitor" at several of the site's construction workers.

Mr Tenconi said he had "deliberately stood up" for the people of Dalton and criticised the local authority for allowing the "Islamic caliphate" into Britain.

On Saturday, between 150 and 200 protesters and counter protesters attended the site, according to Cumbria Police.

The force said it made three arrests though the majority of people acted in a "safe manner".

In June, UKIP posted a video on the social media site X in which Mr Tenconi, who became the party's leader in February, was standing outside the site and telling those working on the construction: "When an illegal, who gets housed here because there's a mosque, goes on to rape and murder – the blood is on your hands."

An official from the mosque said the video had been reported to police and a temporary fence was being built at the front of the site so people could not film and "harass" workers.

The mosque was also hiring a security guard to protect the site overnight, they said.

Cumbria Police declined to comment on specific reports but said it had increased patrols in the area, was monitoring online comments and threads, and was investigating potential offences.

Some posts on social media mentioned the names of the companies involved in building the mosque which was a "deliberate effort to harass them", the mosque official said.

The Islamic Centre is currently under construction in Dalton-in-Furness

Rumours and disinformation about the plans prompted Westmorland and Furness Council to release fact-checking guidance.

This included correcting the notion it would be a "mega-mosque" in the Lake District, as it would be a 33ft (10m) tall and 98ft (30m) long and outside the Lake District National Park.

It was also never the case that an application for a children's home had been turned down at the site, the local authority said.

When proposals for the mosque were first made, the then Barrow Council received 21 objections, 18 responses in support and eight neutral comments, it said.

Some of those objections were linked to the lack of parking provision and the site's impact on the local ecology.

The mosque would be over 40 miles (64km) from the next nearest and is due to be completed by early 2026.

Local resident Bob Mantle, who is a member of the Dalton Community Church, said he found the attacks against the Islamic Centre "very sad".

"I would hate it if I was a Christian and had to travel some 50 miles (80km) to go to church, I would think it was terrible," he said.

Mr Mantle said everyone in Dalton seemed "twitchy" about the new mosque and there was a lot of "bile" being published on local Facebook groups.

"I would love to think that when it's actually built… that people will settle down and realise it's not been the threat they thought it was," he said.