I was listening to the Nick Ferrari radio phone in show (LBC) the day after Jack Straw’s controversial column on wearing of the veils became public. Numerous members of the Muslim community were phoning in to say that it was a religious requirement to wear such veils. There was an equally large number claiming it was not – but simply a cultural preference. It’s a classic dilemma for toleration and liberalism – what do you do when you think something is optional but someone else insists it is mandatory? My view – women should only wear the veil if they want to rather than if pressurised to.

Personally, however, I think there are more issues around women in the Muslim faith than whether they cover their faces or not. I find the covering of the face quite alien but that’s their choice, but have more difficulty with the different positions of relative power between Muslim men and Muslim women. However, I am equally shocked by that male/female power battle when it is displayed in any culture – including my own!

But I do think that Jack Straw’s line that people coming to his surgeries were happy to remove their veil when he asked them to is highly questionable. When someone comes to you as their Member of Parliament, they are in a vulnerable position and almost certainly will be nervous of refusing to comply with such a request and would remove the face veil for fear that non-compliance would unfavourably dispose the MP to helping them. Quite possibly Jack Straw put it sensitively and without pressure – but it is simply the act of coming to surgery in itself that puts both constituent and MP into a power hierarchy. Because someone meets his wishes in that environment doesn’t mean deep down they are comfortable with that.

All that having been said – we are clearly in some trouble. There does now appear to be a growing unease within the white community about where this is all going. I now hear it all the time in a way I have never experienced before. Most of these groupings are articulating that Jack has a point. They find the reaction to the publication of cartoons or the inappropriate statements of the Pope over the top – albeit acknowledging that such incidence do give offence. Such reactions challenge the very fundamental tenets of British society and some people are clearly feeling restless and put upon. This isn’t just an issue about Muslims – after all the questions about what clothing is appropriate to wear, what fits with our cultural norms and what is seen as separate or threatening apply just as much to the debate over the wearing of hoodies by youngsters of all races. But add in religion in the current climate and it makes the issues more pointed and the emotions more strained.

Well – we are all in this together. And together we need to bridge the schism that the terrorist atrocities of 9/11 and 7/7 have opened up. We need to disentangle the terrorists from mainstream Muslims in the British psyche – at the same time as breaking down the walls of separation between Muslim communities and others.

We are going to have to do some straight talking. I don’t know if this was Jack Straw’s clumsy attempt to begin to do so. But we do need to talk about any differences between us that are causing friction or fear. Covering the face, with a veil, hoodie, big sunglasses or a motor helmet all interfere with communication – that is just a statement of fact. Putting up a sign in a bank asking people to remove a veil before entering is, though, a very different matter from asking people to remove motorcycle helmets. So, is there anything we can do about alleviating those fears raised by some items of clothing- be it rational or irrational?

I think many of the fears are caused by the separateness of different communities. What seems threatening on a stranger seems quite different on someone you know – just as a hoodie on your child often seems quite different to a hoodie worn by complete strangers. This invidious argument about the veil is symbolic of some of a much deeper schism which appears currently to be ever-widening. The problem is how rarely people from some communities meet, mingle and befriend those from other communities. That to me is the real challenge – encouraging communities to engage as with the welcome moves in many Muslim communities in this country for more preaching and teaching in English and more outreach to the local community. That is about solving the problems, not just fretting over the symptoms.