Sharia law is backed by top judge

The Lord Chief Justice, Lord Phillips, was accused of handing Muslim extremists yet more ammunition.[>

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Reopening the bitter row over the position of Islamic law, he said there was no reason why it could not be used for contractual agreements and mediation in areas such as family [>

disputes and marriage.[>

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He claimed it was possible for people to have agreements “governed by a law other than English law”. But he stressed there was no place for sharia courts or the implementation of [> punishments by them.[>

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The Lord Chief Justice spoke out five months after the Archbishop of Canterbury faced calls to resign when he claimed that incorporating aspects of the Muslim legal system into British law was now “unavoidable” and “appropriate”.[>

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Lord Phillips last night faced a storm of protest as Downing Street appeared to immediately distance itself from his views.[>

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Tory MP Philip Davies said: “This is totally unacceptable. There is no place for sharia law or any aspect of it in the legal system.

"We have our own legal system here and anyone in this country should accept our laws and the way we do things. The Lord Chief Justice does not understand how damaging these kind of remarks are to community cohesion.”[>

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Labour MP Khalid Mahmood said: “My real concern is that this will further alienate and segregate the Muslim community, and give those who want to radicalise more leverage.[>

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“It is very frustrating and all this does is focus on it and start to bring resentment from other communities.”[>

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In his speech at the East London Muslim Centre in Whitechapel, London, Lord Phillips emphatically ruled out the possibility of sharia courts sitting in this country or deciding punishments.[>

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But he said there was no reason why sharia principles could not be used in “mediation or other forms of alternative dispute resolution”.[>

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He referred to the comments by the Archbishop of Canterbury, who said people should retain the liberty to choose under which jurisdiction to resolve certain matters, including aspects of marital law, the regulation of financial transactions and mediation and conflict resolution.[>

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Lord Phillips said in issues such as family disputes, the system already accommodates such liberty. Crucially, he said: “It is possible in this country for those who are entering into a contractual agreement to agree that the agreement shall be governed by a law other than English law.”[>

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He added: “There is no reason why principles of sharia law, or any other religious code, should not be the basis for mediation or other forms of alternative dispute resolution.” But he stressed that any sanctions for breaching such agreements must refer back to English law.[>

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Sharia is the Islamic religious law based on the Koran, the words and actions of the Prophet Muhammad and the rulings of scholars. [>

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In the West it has become synonymous with barbaric punishments such as beheadings, amputations, stonings and floggings. But, in general, it lays down rules to live by on a huge number of everyday issues, from worship to banking, hygiene and marriage.[>

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But Mr Mahmood said Lord Phillips was suggesting a form of voluntary sharia which was not possible because you cannot have a situation where something is agreed under one law but then, if one side does not like it, they go back to English law. He also warned that there are “huge contradictions” in terms of sex discrimination and equal opportunities between sharia and British law.[>

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The Prime Minister’s office gave the same reaction as it did over the Archbishop of Canterbury’s comments.[>

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“We think British law should be based on British values and determined by the British Parliament,” said a spokesman.[>

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But Massoud Shadjareh, chairman of the Islamic Human Rights Commission, said mediation under sharia law could save the taxpayer hundreds of thousands of pounds as it would avoid parties having to go to court.[>