In a recent book John Mueller, an American academic, notes that the number of his fellow-countrymen killed by terrorists since 1960 “is about the same as the number killed over the same period by accident-causing deer”.

I was upset when I read this. Hitherto, I have always rather enjoyed watching the deer in Richmond Park in London. But now I find myself looking at them with suspicion and resentment. Of course, we must be careful not to generalise about deer. Most of them live peaceful lives. But surely it is foolish to blind ourselves to the murderous threat posed by a small, but fanatical, minority of the deer community? A vicious ideology has lodged itself between their antlers. They seem to be willing to kill and die in pursuit of a deadly fantasy – returning to a golden age when deer controlled the forests of medieval Europe.

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The front page of the evening paper in London this evening proclaims "Muslim leaders condemn bombers". It is rather sad that this should be considered front page news. None of the people arrested in connection with the London and Glasgow bomb plots have, so far, been British Muslims. But it is still clear that we are embarking on another round of the agonised debate about the relationship between Muslims, Islam, Islamism and terrorism.

The Brown government has been praised in many quarters for avoiding the "I" word in condemning the would-be terrorists. They have been characterised as criminals, rather than Islamic terrorists. But some people think the government is being a bit too tactful.

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