A mega mosque is to materialise in East London, however local residents are heavily rejecting the proposal. The mosque is planned to be built at the Riverine Centre in Canning Road, West Ham, which is just minutes away from the Olympic Park, where the most successful Olympic Games ever were hosted.

The plans show that the mosque will have a capacity of 10,000 people which is four times greater than St Paul’s Cathedral in Central London, and will have 40 foot minarets as well as flats for Islamic clerics to stay in, and a library.
However, the plans for the mega build have created much tension and tautness within the local town, and residents have put their views forward.

A campaign has been setup to stop the build going ahead, led by a group called ‘Mega Mosque No Thanks’. The group have very extreme views, and have sent round leaflets to every resident’s house, including mine. They claim this mosque ‘demonstrates the desire to dominate’ and that ‘Muslims are destined to be masters of everything on Earth’.

If too many complaints are received, Newham Council can decline the planning application, but at the moment they have refused to comment. One man, who wished to remain anonymous, said that ‘the Islamic rise must be stopped’ and that it would result in ‘no other faiths being accepted’.

Although Newham Council would like to use this site for building new homes, this new proposal is seen to be significant, especially due to the amount of multiculturalism in Newham. A decision is expected to be made on 16th November 2012.