Eurocrats have blasted Britain's flagship counter-extremism programmes – despite a string of deadly Islamist terror attacks on the Continent.

Schemes in the UK have been credited with stopping dozens of British fundamentalists travelling abroad to join Islamic State.

However a report by the Council of Europe warned the UK's anti-radicalisation programmes were 'fomenting resentment' within Muslim communities.

The Strasbourg-based body, which is separate from the EU, said the Prevent and Channel strategies were 'jeopardising' efforts to integrate Muslims, leading some communities to become extremism incubators.

The Council of Europe said the Prevent and Channel strategies were 'jeopardising' efforts to integrate Muslims in the UK, leading some communities to become extremism incubators (file photo)

But experts criticised the conclusion, and said the UK's counter-extremism strategy was 'the best in the world'.

One insider said: 'Look at where they are in France. Look at where they are in Germany. We have the most successful strategy in the world and it is rich for the Council of Europe to criticise it.'

PREVENT SCHEMES AIM TO KEEP US SAFE The Prevent scheme aims to stop people being drawn into or supporting terrorism. It focuses on responding to the ideological challenge of terrorism and the threat from those who promote it, and working with institutions where there are risks of radicalisation. In 2015-16, some 7,500 men, women and children were put in touch with the programme. Meanwhile Channel works on providing support at an early stage to individuals at risk of being radicalised – involving organisations including schools, the NHS and the police to draw up specific plans. In the eight years to March 2014, a total of 3,934 people underwent the programme. Advertisement

The British schemes are believed to have prevented more than 150 Muslims going to join IS in Iraq and Syria.

They were set up in the wake of the 7/7 London bombings in 2005, in an attempt to stop vulnerable people being sucked into extremism.

Since then, only one person has been murdered in a jihadist attack on the mainland – soldier Lee Rigby, who was butchered by fanatics in Woolwich, south-east London, four years ago.

In contrast, there has been a string of terror strikes in Europe, including the Paris massacre which killed 130 people in November 2015, bombings in Brussels in March 2016 which killed 32 and a fanatic who drove a lorry into revellers in Nice in July, which left 85 dead.

Further criticisms from the Council of Europe – the parent body of the European Court of Human Rights – included the legal obligation on schools, the NHS and councils to flag up if an individual might be at risk of radicalisation.

Critics have also previously condemned the schemes as 'toxic' and called for them to be scrapped. Some Muslim organisations, including the discredited human rights group Cage, have claimed they are used to spy on communities.

Cases referred to the programmes overwhelmingly relate to Islamist extremists ,but increasingly referrals are for far-Right fanatics.

The British schemes are believed to have prevented more than 150 Muslims going to join IS in Iraq and Syria (file photo of women wearing niqabs)

Both programmes were cited in an assessment of the UK's compliance with the Council of Europe's Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (FCNM), a legally-binding international treaty signed by the UK.

The FCNM advisory committee said: 'Work on integration appears to be jeopardised by certain aspects of counter-terrorism policy and anti-radicalisation programmes, such as Prevent and Channel, that risk fomenting fear and resentment among persons belonging to minorities, in particular in the Muslim community.'

It added that 'under these programmes liability has been shifted to local authorities and in particular to teachers, to detect early radicalisation... without automatically providing [them] with the necessary competence'.

In December, Chief Constable Simon Cole, the National Police Chiefs' Council spokesman for Prevent, said the programme was 'absolutely fundamental' to Britain's counter-terrorism efforts.

He said: 'Some of those that criticise, criticise perceptions of Prevent rather than what it is. This is not about people who are suspected of terror offences. This is about people who community members have concerns about and need help.'

The Council of Europe report also welcomed positive steps across the UK to boost the rights of national minorities, but warns that intolerance and hate speech are growing.