Reform councillor calls for council meetings to be 'inclusive' after 'inappropriate' Islamic prayer reading: 'We should be speaking English!'

A nationwide debate has been sparked by Mr Parkin after an imam was invited to deliver a verse from the Koran in Arabic as Mayor Choudry was sworn in.

In a letter to Mr Choudhry, councillors acknowledged Birmingham was a "diverse city made up of many different faiths and backgrounds".

However, they said council meetings must "remain inclusive and accessible to all residents regardless of religion or culture".

Speaking about the meeting in question on GB News, Mr Parkin recalled how "inappropriate" the prayer felt, both for fellow councillors and those in the public gallery.

He explained: "So it became very clear at the first full council, which is for the newly elected Birmingham Reform UK councillors and indeed several new councillors from other parties, and actually what occurred was quite inappropriate.

"So we saw the full council commence, this is a meeting which normally elects the leadership of the council, the cabinet positions and other bits and pieces surrounding that on committees.

"But given the current political landscape in Birmingham, all that happened in that meeting was the election of the new Lord Mayor."

He added: "And during that process, obviously, what we've seen is a prayer read in Arabic rather than the English language.

"And actually, our members, alongside members of the public, in the public gallery and indeed people watching at home, found that quite inappropriate indeed."

Pressed by host Martin Daubney on whether the issue was the fact it was a "foreign language" or if it was more specifically because it was "Arabic or Muslim", Mr Parkin made clear that he believes "all meetings" should be in "English only".

He said: "For us it's incredibly clear and incredibly simple. We've seen lots of debates online about this, and the way it's been framed by some of the media purported it to be something entirely different.

"The point that we are making is that in England and the second city of England, all public meetings should be conducted in purely English. Nothing else."

Asked whether he is concerned for the rise in "divisive sectarian politics" in the UK, Mr Parkin argued that it is something we are "already seeing".

He explained: "I think we're already seeing divisive sectarian politics in Birmingham, to be quite candid.

"Throughout the election campaign with several of the independents and indeed the Green Party, we've seen sectarian politics play out, such as the Gorton Denton by-election.

"I think it's not only something which is going to happen, it's something already happening not only in the Second City, but across the United Kingdom."

Pressed by Martin on whether he believes the prayer was an "act of cultural domination", Mr Parkin made clear that it was "not inclusive", something which all council meetings should be.

He concluded: "I think before anything else, it's just not inclusive. We need people in Birmingham to feel included in council meetings at all times, and for that reason we should be speaking in English.

"People constantly criticise Reform for being divisive, accuse us of being racist, and all of these other derogatory remarks that people seem to make in an attempt to slander us.

"But actually, what we always see from Reform UK is an attempt to unite people, and what better way to unite than using our common language and our common set of ideas?"

A Birmingham City Council spokesman said in a statement: "It is standard for every Lord Mayor to ask a local religious leader of their choice to do something at the start of the Mayoral year, if they wish.

"In this case, a blessing was performed for the Lord Mayor in his particular faith. Any Lord Mayor of any faith would have an equal opportunity to do the same."