Cameron orders an end to extraordinary feud between Theresa May and Michael Gove over failure to tackle Islamic extremism in schools



Investigation launched into claims school boards take n over by radicals



Home Sec retary questions ed ucation m inister's handling of scandal

In a leaked letter, she calls for tougher measures to deal with issue

Asks why nothing was done earlier after claims fears were raised in 2008



21 Birmingham schools have been inspected with three so far cleared

Meanwhile, educationalists say snap inspections have 'tarnished' Ofsted



David Cameron today stepped in to order an end to an extraordinary public feud between Theresa May and Michael Gove.



It follows Mrs May, the Home Secretary, launching a thinly-veiled attack on Education Secretary Mr Gove over his handling of the Trojan Horse schools scandal.

Downing Street today insisted that the two departments had been told to focus on tackling

Islamic extremism in schools, and stop briefing against each other.



Home Secretary Theresa May (left) has called for tougher controls on extremism in schools in a letter to Education Secretary Michael Gove (right) following the alleged 'Trojan Horse' plot in Birmingham

In a letter to Mr Gove, Mrs May called for tougher rules to tackle Islamic extremism in schools and asked why action was not taken sooner.

A total of 21 schools in Birmingham have been inspected since allegations that Muslim hardliners were attempting to seize control of school boards in the city.

After police, Ofsted and Department of Education launched investigations, a letter emerged in which Mrs May appeared to question Mr Gove's response.

She wrote: 'Is it true that Birmingham City Council was warned about these allegations in 2008? Is it true that the Department for Education was warned in 2010? If so, why did nobody act?

'I am aware that several investigations are still ongoing and those investigations are yet to conclude. But it is clear to me that we will need to take clear action to improve the quality of staffing and governance if we are to prevent extremism in schools.'

It triggered an immediate trading of insults from rival sources in the two government departments.

A source close to Mr Gove complained of a reluctance by the Home Office to tackle the problem. 'Tony Blair recognised this space. Within government there has been pushback against doing that.

'Charles Farr [counter-terror chief at the Home Office] always believed if extremists become violent we should deal with it.



'It has been characterised by others in government as just beating back the crocodiles that come close to the boat rather than draining the swamp,' the source told The Times.

The between two senior Tories row is tricky for David Cameron, who hoped to focus on the Queen's Speech

But a Home Office source hit back: 'Why is the DfE wanting to blame other people for information they had in 2010? Lord knows what more they have overlooked on the subject of the protection of kids in state schools? It scares me.'

In an attempt to calm the row, the two departments were ordered to issue a joint statement, saying: ' Extremism anywhere in society is a serious problem and we are working together across Government to deal with it.



'That was shown by the work of the Prime Minister’s Extremism Taskforce. There is no difference between the Education Secretary and the Home Secretary, who are both working energetically together to tackle the challenge posed by any form of extremism.'

In a sign of Number 10's irritation, the Prime Minister’s official spokesman added: 'What the two departments are doing, as their statement this morning says, is working together to get to the bottom of this.

'The important thing here is getting to the bottom of serious concerns that have been raised with regard to a number of schools in the Birmingham area. That is the focus, and rightly so.'



A government task force on tackling extremism last year recommended a voluntary code of conduct to prevent children being exposed to 'intolerant or extremist views' in religious schools.

But Mrs May said the Birmingham allegations showed the potential need for a mandatory code and urged Mr Gove to include that option in his plans.

Mrs May wrote: '[Since] December there have been serious allegations of extremism in some Birmingham schools and accusations about the inability of local and central government to tackle the problem effectively.

Park View school, which is at the centre of some of the most serious allegations, has criticised the 'unwarranted and unnecessary concern' caused by leaks from the investigation

'In this context, I am not convinced that a voluntary code is sufficient and I believe it would be sensible to include the option of developing a mandatory code in your consultation document.'



Mrs May said the Birmingham allegations 'raise serious questions about the quality of school governance and oversight arrangements in the maintained sector, not just the supplementary schools that would be signatories to this code of practice'.



Mrs May and Mr Gove moved to damp down speculation over a row within the Cabinet today, issuing a joint statement.

WHAT IS THE TROJAN HORSE PLOT?

The so-called Trojan Horse plot first came to light earlier this year.

Department for Education inspectors were ordered into Park View School in Birmingham along with its sister schools, Golden Hillock and Nansen, after a letter dubbed 'Trojan Horse' was uncovered.

It is alleged girls at the school were forced to sit at the back of the classroom and non-Muslim pupils forced to 'teach themselves'.

The letter, which some have claimed is fake, prompted separate investigations by both the Department for Education (DfE) and Ofsted in to the school and several others in the area.

The DfE has also appointed its own education commissioner, the former head of the Metropolitan Police’s counter-terrorism unit Peter Clarke for the investigation.

The National Association of Head Teachers said it had ‘serious concerns’ about attempts to ‘alter the character’ of at least six schools - warning the 'plot' was spreading across the country.



It said: 'The Department for Education and the Home Office take the problems in Birmingham schools and all issues relating to extremism very seriously.

'Michael Gove and Theresa May are working together to ensure we get to the bottom of what has happened in Birmingham and take the necessary steps to fix it.'

And a source close to the Education Secretary said: 'Michael Gove thinks Theresa May is a superb Home Secretary.

'We will continue to work well with the Home Office and other Government departments to combat extremism in all its forms.'

Of the 21 schools inspected over the alleged Trojan Horse plot by hardline Muslims to seize control of classrooms, three have so far been given a clean bill of health by Ofsted.

Ninestiles School, an Academy in Acocks Green, Small Heath School, and Washwood Heath Academy are the first to publish the results of their inspections, after Mr Gove sent Ofsted in.

Park View school has been the focus of the most damning allegations after whistleblowing teachers claimed the school was in the hands of a group of extremists who infiltrated the governing body.



But Park View trust, which runs the school and three others in the city, has denied any wrong-doing.

Trust chairman Tahir Alam, who was accused of being part of the plot, has called the allegations 'a witch-hunt'.

The school said leaked Ofsted findings were causing 'unwarranted and unnecessary concern' for children and parents.

Tahir Alam, who has been implicated in the conspiracy involving the alleged takeover of schools in Birmingham, has called the investigation a 'witch-hunt'

It came as 20 educationalists said the snap inspections called after the claims had 'tarnished' Ofsted's reputation.

In a letter to the Guardian, a group of experts including Sir Tim Brighouse, a former chief education officer, said: 'First-hand accounts of the Ofsted inspections that have emerged are disturbing.

'They suggest that inspectors were poorly prepared and had an agenda that calls into question Ofsted's claim to be objective and professional in its appraisal of standards in schools serving predominately Muslim pupils.



'It is beyond belief that schools which were judged less than a year ago to be outstanding are now widely reported as "inadequate", despite having the same curriculum, the same students, the same leadership team and the same governing body.'