London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Aug 24, 2026

Danish far-right leader banned from UK over threat to burn Quran in Wakefield

Danish far-right leader banned from UK over threat to burn Quran in Wakefield

A Danish far-right politician has been barred from the UK after threatening to burn a copy of the Quran in Wakefield.

Security minister Tom Tugendhat said Rasmus Paludan, founder of the anti-Islam party Stram Kurs, had been added to the UK's immigration watchlist.

Mr Paludan had said he planned to burn the religious text in a public square in the West Yorkshire city this week.

It comes after four pupils at a Wakefield school were suspended over damage to a copy of the Quran.

In a video posted to Twitter on Sunday, Mr Paludan said he would travel to the city to "fight back" against "undemocratic forces".

He claimed he intended to burn the Quran on Wednesday to coincide with the start of Ramadan.

Mr Paludan has held several previous protests in which the Islamic text was burned, with some leading to violent counter-demonstrations.

In January he burned a copy of the Quran outside the Turkish embassy in Stockholm.

That protest became part of a diplomatic row between Turkey and Sweden - with Turkey now holding up Sweden's application to join Nato.


'Hateful and racist'


The security minister told the House of Commons about his intervention after Simon Lightwood, the Labour MP for Wakefield, raised concerns on Monday about Mr Paludan's potential visit.

Mr Lightwood said: "Far-right Islamophic Danish politician Rasmus Paludan said he is going to travel from Denmark to Wakefield for the sole purpose of burning a Quran in a public place.

"Mr Paludan was previously jailed in Denmark for his hateful and racist statements. He is a dangerous man that should not be allowed into this country.

"Can the home secretary assure me and my community that the government is taking action to prevent this?"

Mr Tugendhat said Mr Paludan had been added to to the UK's warnings index.

He added: "His travel to the United Kingdom would not be conducive with the public good and he will not be allowed access."

Four pupils were suspended from Wakefield's Kettlethorpe High School in February after a Year 10 student brought in a Quran, reportedly as part of a dare.

The cover of the Islamic text was torn and some pages scuffed, but police concluded no offences were committed and the school's headteacher said she was satisfied there was "no malicious intent by those involved".

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Prime Minister Andy Burnham to Give Ukraine Classified Storm Shadow Blueprints for Domestic Missile Production
UK Graduate Job Vacancies Plunge 45% to Lowest Levels on Record
Government Audit Reveals Pressure on UK Hospitality From Business Rates and Rising Costs
Kindertransport Survivor Prepares to Revisit European Sites Linked to Her Family’s Wartime Separation
Northern England Transport Operators Strengthen Contingency Plans as Travel Demand Rises
New Implant Trials Offer Treatment Prospects for Patients With Refractory Angina
South Wales Reviews Wildfire Response After Exceptionally Dry Summer
UK Treasury Prepares Autumn Fiscal Statement Amid Spending and Defense Pressures
Norfolk Records First Wild Beaver Births in More Than Five Hundred Years
Historic Portrait of Benjamin Disraeli Reported Missing From Parliament’s Art Collection
Five People, Including Police Officers, Killed in A66 Crash as Families Pay Tribute
Most English Secondary Schools Found to Fall Short of National Healthy Food Standards
UK Think Tank Says Productivity Growth May Be Stronger Than Official Data Shows
Reform Party Proposes Lower Social Housing Priority for Foreign-Born UK Citizens
UK Government Plans Business Rate Overhaul to Ease Pressure on Pubs and Hotels
New Daily Diabetes and Weight-Loss Pill Launches Across NHS Pharmacies in England
UK Graduate Job Vacancies Fall to Lowest Level in a Decade
UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham Visits Kyiv to Reaffirm Long-Term Military Support for Ukraine
Iranian Hackers Shut Down British Power Plant for Four Days in Landmark Cyber Attack
Novak Djokovic Reveals Relentless Self-Doubt and Rejects Retirement in New Documentary
Trump Imposes 50% Tariffs on Canadian Goods After Bilateral Trade Talks Collapse
First Bus Bars Unaccompanied Under-Sixteens From Evening Services in Stoke-on-Trent
Lithium-Ion Battery Fires Cost UK Waste Sector About One Billion Pounds a Year
Reform UK Proposes Lower Social Housing Priority for Foreign-Born Naturalised Citizens
UK Government Deploys AI Drones in Crackdown on Illegal Waste Dumping
EU Biometric Border Checks Cause Disruption for British Travellers and Freight Operators
UK Expands Voluntary Drug Treatment Programme for Sex Offenders to Twenty Prisons
CrossCountry Cancels Most Services After Major Power Failure at Control Centre
Met Office Warns El Niño Could Bring Severe Autumn Storms and Higher Food Prices
Resolution Foundation Says UK Productivity Growth May Be Stronger Than Official Data Suggest
Andy Burnham Proposes Giving Regional Mayors Greater Planning Powers
UK Government Overhauls Planning Rules to Accelerate Housing Near Transport Links
Russia Withdraws Ambassador to Britain and Warns of Retaliation Over UK Drone Supplies to Ukraine
Iran-Linked Hackers Blamed for Cyberattack That Shut Down UK Power Plant
Andy Burnham Pledges UK Support for Long-Range Missile Production in Ukraine
Australia Combines Indigenous Fire Knowledge With Satellite Tech to Combat Catastrophic Wildfires
Father and Son Jailed in Scotland Over £900,000 Airport Cannabis Smuggling Operation
UK Fraud Reports Surge Sevenfold as Criminals Exploit QR Codes in Parking Meters and Phishing Emails
Brighton Thrash Aston Villa in Four-Goal Opening Half as Manchester City Trail Bournemouth
Erin Patterson Appeals Triple Murder Convictions After Hotel Mixed Sequestered Jury With Prosecution
Bank of England Maintains Close Watch on Banks Amid Global Economic Uncertainty
Warm Weather and Tourism Support UK High Street Spending During Summer
Westminster Faces Continuing Political and Administrative Fallout From Epstein Files Release
UK Invests in Domestic Defence Drone Manufacturing to Strengthen Military Supply Chains
Around Five Million UK Households Face Higher Mortgage Payments by 2028
Bluetongue Virus Cases Rise Across England, Wales and Scotland
UK Government Holds First National Day for Victims and Survivors of Terrorism
Historic Summer Droughts Threaten UK Harvests and Put Further Pressure on Food Prices
UK Economy Holds Up in Second Quarter Despite Global Energy and Geopolitical Pressures
UK Opens National Artificial Intelligence Safety Testing Facility
×