I've seen Geert Wilders' film Fitna. I didn't think much of it.
It's distasteful, misleading and unneccessarily inflammatory. On top off that, I fear that in the hands of certain people the film could be used to stir up racial hatred and tensions that can only play into the hands of political extremists like the BNP.
That said, I've never believed that the way to tackle intolerance is to forcibly close down debate about unsavoury or uncomfortable topics. The way you defeat extremists is through an open, intelligent and reasoned public debate which highlights just how ludicrous their views really are.
By refusing Geert Wilders, an elected Member of Parliament from a democratic country like the Netherlands, entry into the United Kingdom all Jacqui Smith has done is raise awareness of his tawdry film (freely available following a three second Google search) and increase opportunities for the BNP to rail against the so-called "liberal elite" who defend our multi-ethnic society.
Wilders, as unedifying a man as he may be, does at least appear to be a democrat. He has not called for the elimination of entire states and ethnicities or the forcible incorporation of any country into an Islamic caliphate.
The same cannot be said for many of the individuals this government has allowed to freely walk the streets of our towns and cities spreading their brand of debauched bile. The names of Yusuf al-Qaradawi, Abu Hamza al-Masri and Abu Qatada instantly spring to mind. Similarly, the British government was less than forceful in its efforts to block Robert Mugabe from attending the European Union's Africa summit in Lisbon in December 2007, instead opting to stage a headline-snatching faux boycott of the meeting.
Please; let's have some consistency from Jacqui Smith and this Labour government.