Poll Archive

Muslim 7/7 Poll

Fieldwork: July 4th 2006 - July 5th 2006

published by The Times / ITV News

Click here to download detailed results 287k

Living in Britain Today

Muslims	Agree	Disagree	Net agree
Muslims (They) have experienced more abuse and hostility since the London bombings last year	79%	11%	+68
Muslims (They) are viewed with suspicion by their fellow citizens	74%	13%	+61
Muslims (They) make a valuable contribution to British society	92%	3%	+89
Muslims will prosper financially and socially in the UK in the future	57%	17%	+40

General Population	Agree	Disagree	Net agree
Muslims (They) have experienced more abuse and hostility since the London bombings last year	62%	15%	+47
Muslims (They) are viewed with suspicion by their fellow citizens	60%	19%	+41
Muslims (They) make a valuable contribution to British society	59%	18%	+41
They feel confident about their future in Britain	42%	27%	+15

Muslims after 7/7

Muslims	Agree	Disagree	Net agree
The Government isn't doing enough to combat extremism in the Muslim community	56%	23%	+33
The Muslim community in Britain needs to do more to integrate into mainstream British culture	66%	21%	+44
Pupils should always have the right to wear religious dress regardless of their school's uniform policy	76%	17%	+59
I believe non-Muslims in the UK view Islam as a religion which encourages violence	56%	36%	+20
The British invasion of Iraq was the principal reason for the London bomb attacks	50%	28%	+22
The 7/7 bombers were acting according to the true principles of Islam	6%	87%	-81
The 7/7 bombers should be considered martyrs	13%	67%	54
The 7/7 attacks were wrong but the cause of the bombers was right	16%	69%	-53

General Population	Agree	Disagree	Net agree
The Government isn't doing enough to combat extremism in the Muslim community	49%	24%	+25
The Muslim community in Britain needs to do more to integrate into mainstream British culture	74%	11%	+63
Pupils should always have the right to wear religious dress regardless of their school's uniform policy	42%	47%	-5
Islam encourages more violence than other religions	31%	45%	-14

Combating Terrorism in Britain

Muslims	Is it acceptable or	unacceptable?
	Acceptable	Unacceptable	Net Agree
For the Intelligence Services to infiltrate Muslim organisations in order to gather information on their activities and fundraising	48%	47%	+1
For the authorities to monitor more closely what clerics are preaching at Mosques	49%	48%	+1
For the police to view Muslims with greater suspicion because the 7/7 bombers were Muslim	16%	81%	-65

General Population	Is it acceptable or	unacceptable?
	Acceptable	Unacceptable	Net Agree
For the Intelligence Services to infiltrate Muslim organisations in order to gather information on their activities and fundraising	65%	26%	+39
For the authorities to monitor more closely what clerics are preaching at Mosques	60%	32%	+28
For the police to view Muslims with greater suspicion because the 7/7 bombers were Muslim	35%	58%	-23

Muslims

What would your reaction be if a close member of your family chose to join one of the following organisations?	Pride	Acceptance	Anger	Indifference
The Police	35%	37%	8%	19%
British Army	20%	28%	23%	26%
The Security Services (MI5 & MI6)	23%	31%	16%	26%
Al Qaeda	2%	2%	78%	16%

Islam and Its Values

Muslims	Agree	Disagree	Net agree
The War against Terrorism is in fact a War against Islam	56%	32%	+24
Britain 's anti-terror laws are applied fairly to the Muslim community	34%	47%	-13
Modern British values are a threat to the Islamic way of life	36%	44%	-8
The values of British society degrade women	36%	42%	-6

General Population	Agree	Disagree	Net agree
Islam is a threat to Britain's way of life	25%	54%	-29
Islam treats women as inferior to men	51%	26%	+25

Muslim / Non-Muslim Friends

Muslims
Do you have any close personal friends?	Yes	No	Net Agree
Who are non-Muslim	87%	13%	+74

General Population
Do you have any close personal friends?	Yes	No	Net Agree
Who are Muslim	33%	66%	-33

Public Conduct

Muslims
The following acts are offensive?	Agree	Disagree	Net agree
Visible drunkenness in public places	57%	33%	+24
Public displays of affection between people of the same sex	44%	36%	+8
Public displays of affection between people of the opposite sex	36%	37%	-1
Women wearing low-cut tops or short skirts	29%	44%	-15

General Population
The following acts are offensive?	Agree	Disagree	Net agree
Visible drunkenness in public places	54%	36%	+18
Public displays of affection between people of the same sex	30%	48%	-18
Public displays of affection between people of the opposite sex	27%	50%	-23
Women wearing low-cut tops or short skirts	21%	52%	-31

Public Transport

Muslims	Agree	Disagree	Net agree
I think it is offensive that some non-Muslims feel anxious if they see someone they think is Muslim on public transport with a large bag or backpack	49%	37%	+12
I think it is understandable that some non-Muslims may feel anxious if they see someone they think is Muslim on public transport with a large bag or backpack	48%	37%	+11
I feel anxious if I see someone I think is Muslim on public transport with a large bag or backpack	18%	69%	-51

General Population	Agree	Disagree	Net agree
I can understand why Muslims would find it offensive if some people feel anxious when they see someone they think is Muslim on public transport with a large bag or backpack	57%	21%	+36
I think it is understandable that some people may feel anxious if they see someone they think is Muslim on public transport with a large bag or backpack, though I am not one of them	52%	26%	+26
I feel anxious if I see someone I think is Muslim on public transport with a large bag or backpack	25%	51%	-26

Suicide Bombings

Muslims
Are there any circumstances under which you think that suicide bombings can ever be justified in the UK against the following types of targets?	Yes	No	Net Agree
Civilians	7%	89%	-82
The military	16%	79%	-63
The Police	10%	86%	-76
Government buildings/workers	11%	85%	-74

Sympathy with 7/7 Bombers

Muslims
In broad terms what proportion of British Muslims would you say sympathise with the aims of terrorists behind last year's London bombings?
A tiny minority	48%
A significant minority	12%
Roughly half	7%
A majority	12%
None	16%

General Population
In broad terms what proportion of British Muslims would you say sympathise with the aims of terrorists behind last year's London bombings?
A tiny minority -	54%
A significant minority -	10%
Roughly half-	11%
A majority-	9%
None-	5%

Chances of a 7/7 Recurrence

Muslims
Do you believe that further suicide bomb attacks in the UK are?
Highly likely	10%
Likely	32%
Unlikely	30%
Highly unlikely	19%

General Population
Do you believe that further suicide bomb attacks in the UK are?
Highly likely	31%
Likely	47%
Unlikely	10%
Highly unlikely	6%

Populus interviewed a random sample of 1,131 adults aged 18+ by telephone between 1st June 2006 and 16th June 2006. Interviews were conducted across England and the results have been weighted to be representative of all English adults. Populus is a member of the British Polling Council and abides by its rules. For a full description of the methods we use, please click here.

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