A LEADING Muslim MP has backed Kirklees Council's stance over a teaching assistant who refused to remove her veil.
Dewsbury MP Shahid Malik said he believed council officials had done all they could to defuse the row which has seen Aishah Azmi suspended from her post at Headfield C of E Junior School at Thornhill Lees.
The 24-year-old bilingual support worker refused to remove her veil while teaching English to youngsters at the school.
She is now seeking victory over the council at an industrial tribunal.
But Mr Malik, private secretary to schools minister Jim Knight, said the council had acted correctly.
He added: "I firmly believe that both the authority and school have bent over backwards in their attempts to accommodate the classroom assistant.
"She was asked to remove her veil only when in direct contact with children, a request that is utterly reasonable.
"I fully support the education authority and school on this matter.
"As individuals, all women have the right and freedom to wear what they wish, and rightly so, be it a veil, a mini-dress or a gorilla suit.
"However, in certain occupations there are dress codes which employees are expected to adhere to while at work.
"All right-minded people - Muslim and non-Muslim alike - will agree that in asking a classroom assistant not to wear a veil while in contact with children because it hinders their learning is perfectly acceptable and just common sense.
"It is an uncomfortable situation but the education authority has acted responsibly and sensibly."
Mr Malik said he had sympathy with Miss Azmi, but at the end of the day the main focus in schools had to be the interests of the children. Their learning must always come first.
"The role of a teaching assistant is to do exactly that, to assist in a child's education.
"But when your style of dress limits your ability to carry out your role then the welfare and education of the children must come first."
Miss Azmi's husband, Ahmed Khan, briefly spoke to reporters outside their home in Dewsbury.
He said his wife had gone for a walk and was unavailable for comment.
But he confirmed that she wanted to wear the veil in school.
