Why Policy Exchange invented the bogeyman of 'Islamopopulism'

Why Policy Exchange invented the bogeyman of 'Islamopopulism' Submitted by Iqbal Mohamed on Fri, 06/05/2026 - 14:29 Muslims across Britain are engaging with politics in a more meaningful way - and that frightens defenders of the status quo Protesters take part in a Palestine solidarity march in London on 11 October 2025 (AFP) Off Fifteen years ago, Baroness Sayeeda Warsi famously declared that Islamophobia had passed the “ dinner-table test ”. For Policy Exchange, a right-wing think-tank that is notoriously opaque about its funders, contempt for Muslims has been on the menu for considerably longer than that. Last month, Policy Exchange released two reports on a new phenomenon that it is calling “Islamopopulism”, and whose supposed rise can be seen in the recent local election results.