The overwhelming majority are far too busy earning a living and caring for their families to bother about a Sharia state. Their political views are emphatically moderate and community members serve on the local district council in growing numbers. Over eight years, I've developed a great respect and affection for Ahl as-Sunnat wa'al-Jama'at-the house of Sunni orthodoxy and consensus. But clouds are gathering. The Western powers and Pakistan built up Saudi-aligned groups to help topple the Soviets in Afghanistan. We live with the consequences today. I don't know of a major terror plot in Britain whose trail hasn't led back to Pakistan. The open wound of Kashmir is a source of pain and grievance. Extremists with slick websites, excellent English and a smattering of Arabic are targeting the children and grandchildren of the mainstream Muslim majority, who go to mosques where English may not be spoken at all.

There's hope in abundance. Consider, for example, the letter published by prominent Muslims during the Gaza crisis, unreservedly condemning anti-Semitic assaults on British Jews and the attempted burning down of a synagogue. Mention of Gaza takes me to my three points. First, 9/11, 7/7, the Mumbai horror and last week's assault on the Sri Lankan cricket team were executed by terrorists in the name of Islam. This should be a statement of the obvious. Unfortunately, it's not obvious to the 9/11 "troofers" (conspiracy theorists) and to a minority of British Muslims. There's a tendency to envelope plain fact in a fog of conspiracy - particularly where Pakistan is concerned.

The Mumbai horror drew suggestions that the massacres were a "false flag" operation masterminded by the Indian government. The same sort of allegation is now up and running in relation to the Lahore assault. To date, the main victims of this rubbish aren't those who are libelled. Rather, they're the people who fall for it, thereby absorbing the message that they're passive victims of hidden powers.