British Muslims and Inbreeding

They seem to hit the news in some way every week. Most recently the Archbishop of Canterbury said British Muslims should be able to live under Sharia Law. Now there is a new buzz about Britain's Muslim population - inbreeding. The UK's environmental minister, with the support of medical experts, has said the Muslim culture of inbreeding, i.e. consistent marrying of first cousins, is leading to a huge jump in birth defects. The claim, which many believe will cause controversy, says that British Pakistanis, while only accounting for 3% of all births, are responsible for a third of those children born with genetic defects. Ann Cryer, an MP who has also addressed this thorny issue, has said the British Pakistani community is "in denial at the moment" over the problems of inbreeding.