Review of Prevent counter-terror scheme may be ‘redundant’ four years after it began, campaigners say

Publication of report delayed by disputes over content and Home Office response

William Shawcross delivered his review to the government in April but it has not been published (PA)

The findings of a review into the Prevent counter-terror scheme may be “redundant” by the time it is published, four years after being announced, campaigners have said.

Theresa May’s government announced an independent probe into the programme, which has been criticised for both ineffectiveness and over-reach, in January 2019.

The move followed years of accusations that Prevent was stigmatising Muslims and stifling free speech in schools and universities, but leaked excerpts of a report by reviewer William Shawcross call for an intensified focus on Islamist extremism.