AIBU to think face coverings in public should be banned?

I think the hijab and burqa should be banned in this country same as it is across a lot of Europe now.Couldn’t care less whether I am thought to be racist.

No one, in any country, should be telling women how they may dress.

My reason for banning niquabs is because it is not a religious requirement and I think it isolates women from minority communities

Many religious women wear wigs, long drab dresses, and head scarves - they stand out a mile and it isolates them, are they to be banned?

Just how many niqabs do you see out and about? Dare I ask where you live

So because women in Iran are fighting for the freedom to dress as they wish, we should stop women in the UK dressing as they wish?

Why? Would also you ban the kippah/yarmulke or is it only Muslim head coverings that bother you?

If you're idea of "freedom" is women having their clothing choice outlawed by the goverment then I don't want it.
Do you seriously think the goverment taking away women's choice to choose their outfits is somehow making women less oppressed?

Who would enforce such a ban?

And, what about delivery drivers on electric bikes in balaclavas zooming all over the place and don't obey the Highway Code... but if my grandson were to do such a job I'd want him to wear some sort of face covering in the cold weather and to prevent breathing in all the toxic fumes

As for the niqab - I'm not a fan but does it cause any real problem for the average person?

I think that was more of a myth. It’s more true of a baggy blue but outside of work most people I see who are still wearing masks have an FFP2 or higher which will protect both even if the fit isn’t perfect.

Who gets to decide if protecting your health in any given case is a suitable reason? Would people have to prove medical history if the OP is proposing to allow them for health in only specific circumstances.

No, it would be sending a message that regressive Islam isn't welcome here, not that Muslims aren't welcome. There are thousands of Iranian women fighting for their freedom yet you think women should be "free" to veil here? That is not freedom.

Yes. Many are just to get away with something, without cameras being used. .

I would ban the hijab while at it

No, Government in the UK should not be in the business of telling any woman how they can dress. I do not like full face coverings, but it is a matter of choice. Although only a small number of muslims where a full face covering, the purpose in any ban would be to make their lives less comfortable and to send a message that Muslims are not welcome.

Criminals using balaclavas to conceal their identities has always been an "issue" (at least since the Battle of Balaclava 1854 when they came into being; before that robbers used kerchiefs over their faces and highwaymen used masks). How else can criminals conceal their identities? If someone is hellbent on crime, being told off for covering their face isn't going to stop them.

Too right OP! And as these young thugs always ride bikes we should ban all bikes. To be honest we should probably ban all young people, say under 25 from being outside after 6pm or on Saturdays.

They often wear black colour clothing too so maybe ban black clothes.

Anything else you can think of? Someone used a car to ram raid a jewellers near me recently. How about a car ban?

Yeah but I think that’s just one of those things you have to deal with. I’m also hearing impaired, I can’t understand what people in medical masks are saying unless I’m somewhere with no background noise at all and they’re speaking deliberately slowly and clearly. But I wouldn’t think that therefore people shouldn’t wear them because my need to understand them is more important than their health. They have a medical issue. I have a medical issue. We’ll figure something out.

A lot of the people who want Muslim women to remove their face coverings are the same people who protest loudly whilst covering their own faces - and rail against ID cards because 'invasion of privacy'.

You can't keep repeating that this is about crime OP, whilst including Muslim women in your argument who form a teeny tiny proportion of the criminal population.

The pp seemed to think there was no problem with face covering where she lived - people only covered faces against the bitter weather

I think you need to read pp's posts again.

But the goverment making laws about what women can and can't wear isn't oppressive? 🤔

I am shocked it's 2026 and people are still debating whether it's ok to tell a woman she can't wear her niquab. The goverment has NO place in telling women what they can or can't wear. What a ridiculous comment.
Not to mention the weather. I am assuming OP doesn't live in a particularly cold part of the UK. When I lived in the Yorkshire dales even the 15 minute walk to and from my kid's school in the icy wind Dec-Feb would make my nose so cold and painfully numb I would want to cry. I couldn't imagine being outlawed to wear my pink fluffy balaclava style hat

YANBU, OP. 100% support banning face coverings in the UK. Including niqab and burqa which I view as oppressive to women and girls.

YABU, banning clothing is authoritarian.

What about beards?
What about scarves?
What about face masks?
What about bridal veils?
What about long fringes?
What about deerstalker hats?
What about large sunglasses?
What about motorcycle helmets?

I think tackle criminal behaviour, don't criminalise ordinary clothing.

I think this is what normalised face coverings rather than religious use.

I am old enough to remember when a balaclava or ski mask meant bank robbers or IRA, so I am all in favour of no face coverings - they still spark that old memory.

As for medical face masks - IIRC they protect everyone from the wearer, and offer very little protection to them; so I think a case could be made for dropping them too.