Speaking to a group of moderate Muslims in London, Mr Blair explained that his government's foreign policies were not based at all on religion. He said: "The voices of extremism are no more representative of Islam than the use in times gone by of torture to force conversion to Christianity represented the teachings of Christ."
The prime minister was attending an inter-faith programme at Cambridge University, which was also attended by the grand muftis of Egypt and Bosnia, but not representatives of more extreme or politicised lobbying groups.
The conference coincided with a government-commissioned report that criticised British universities for their lack of diversity in teaching on the Middle East, saying that they were insufficient given the modern realities of Muslim life in Britain.
The report, which was published by the Islamic Foundation-funded Markfield Institute on Monday, recommended that universities should recruit traditionally trained scholars and renew courses.
