Former UK PM defends Trump for highlighting 'Sharia law' in Britain during UN speech

Former British Prime Minister Liz Truss, a conservative free speech advocate, told Fox News Digital that President Donald Trump was right to bring attention to the "pockets of Britain where Sharia law is being practiced" during his remarks to the United Nations General Assembly in New York City in September.

While the current British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and London Mayor Sadiq Khan quickly rebuked Trump's remarks, Truss acknowledged the legitimacy of London's shifting politics.

"London doesn't want Sharia law, but the fact is, there are pockets of London and pockets of Britain where Sharia law is being practiced, and President Trump is right to call it out," Truss said.

Trump called Khan a "terrible mayor" during his address to the U.N. this year, lamenting that London has become "so changed," and charging that "they want to go to Sharia law."

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When reached for comment, the London mayor's office pointed to his statement to Politico regarding Trump's criticism. Khan told the outlet that Trump is "obsessed" with him and that Americans are "flocking" to live in London, arguing the city's liberal values are the "antithesis" of Trump’s.

And while Truss clarified that London "doesn't want Sharia law," she recognized the shifting identities and ideologies of the country she briefly led.

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"It's appalling," Truss said. "It's completely out of line with our ancient British liberties, whether it's about freedom of association, freedom of speech, property rights, and the problem is the left of British politics have appeased this, and they've allowed these things to go on in our country. I think that's completely wrong."

Sharia is the religious and moral code of Islam that guides both personal religious duties, including prayer and fasting, and broader ethical and social principles.

According to the British Census Report Summary 2025, the United Kingdom is home to 4 million Muslims, which is about 6% of the population. Census data shows the Muslim population has more than doubled in the United Kingdom since 2001.

While the U.K. has seen an influx of Muslim immigrants, members of the United Nations Security Council have cautioned against conflating counter-terrorism efforts with stigmatizing Muslims or equating Islam with terrorism.

"We have been, frankly, importing jihadis, and that is dangerous," Truss said. "We have had a number of terror attacks. We also have very serious issues with crime, and people are frustrated that they're paying for the housing and accommodation of illegal immigrants, and, meanwhile, their lives aren't getting any better. There's an economic decline in Britain."

Terrorism-related arrests reached a five-year high in the U.K. in 2024, according to Counter Terrorism Policing, the national policing body for terrorism in the United Kingdom.

And per to the 2024 Annual Threat Report, an annual assessment of national terrorism threats in the U.K., Islamist extremism remains the country’s dominant terror risk.

The Human Rights Act 1998, which was introduced by former Prime Minister Tony Blair, incorporated the European Convention on Human Rights into U.K. law and guaranteed everyone in the country, including foreign nationals, has basic legal rights.

The British conservative served just 49 days as prime minister of the U.K. in 2022 before resigning amid market turmoil over her administration's dramatic attempt to implement a pro-growth economic agenda. Now that the dust has settled, Truss has launched a private club for "pro-growth leaders," the Leconfield, and a YouTube show, "The Liz Truss Show."

"This is a big problem that needs to be fixed," Truss said regarding U.K. terrorism and economic decline. "One of the things my show is going to be talking about is how do we do that? How do we achieve a Trump revolution in Britain? How do we deal with mass migration? How do we deal with the free speech crisis? You know, the fact that people are being arrested for putting something on X and even put in jail, which I think people in America would find shocking."

Truss plans to dig into issues like mass migration and civil liberties on her weekly show, arguing that the U.K. is facing a growing "free speech" crisis that deserves international attention.

According to data obtained by The Times earlier this year, the U.K. police made over 30 arrests a day for "offensive" online communications in 2023 – roughly 12,000 total.

Fox News Digital reached out to Trump and Starmer for comment but did not immediately receive responses.