By Marwan Blatresh
LONDON, July 4 (KUNA) -- Muslims in Britain are the most charitable among other faiths, with GBP 225 million a year; some GBP 100 million (USD 157 million) during Ramadan, a current data revealed.
"These figures are estimates and gathered by all 1,800 mosques and Islamic societies in Britain," Mohammad Shaker, communication officer of the Muslim Charities Forum in Britain, told KUNA over the phone.
However, Emma Caldwell, press officer at Charity Commission; the official regulator of charities in England and Wales, utterly stressed in a written statement to KUNA that the commission does not keep records of donations and alms of the Muslim community in Britain.
Her affirmation was backed by a similar statement by Prime Minister David Cameron, who almost consistently reiterates, with the advent of the holy month each year in Britain, the pioneering role of the Muslim community in the area of charity and its headship in it among all other religious minorities in the country.
A survey conducted by JustGiving - the world's leading online giving platform - in 2013, showed that Alms (Zakat) giving has grown by close to 70 percent over the last few years, with the period of Ramadan seeing a boom in donations through the platform.
Another survey has also revealed the scale of Muslim generosity in Britain, with research suggesting that Muslims give more than twice as much per capita than the average Briton (a reported GBP 370 vs GBP 165).
Dr. Ahmad Al-Dubayan, Director General of the Islamic Cultural Centre, told KUNA that the main reason behind Muslim's noticeable charity records stemmed from the "noble" teachings of Islam, which instructs Zakat and always encourages charity and helping the needy, either Muslims through Zakat or non-Muslims through donation. (end) mrn.hb