London, Feb. 13 : The British Government has banned the entry of Geert Wilders, the producer of the controversial anti-Islam movie `Fitna'.

The Gordon Brown Government has taken this step to avoid hurting the religious and emotional sentiments of the British Muslim community.

Britain's first Muslim minister, Shahid Malik, and other Muslim community leaders have appreciated the government's gesture in not allowing Dutch MP Wilders to enter London.

"It is a matter of great satisfaction that all three major political parties decided to keep them aloof this controversy," The Dawn quoted the Muslim leader, as saying.

The Home Office had earlier said there was a blanket ban on Wilders entering the UK under EU laws, enabling member states to exclude someone whose presence could threaten public security.

Justice Minister Shahid Malik said the timely action by the UK government has proved that it opposed to extremism in all its forms and Wilders' message of hatred had no place in the UK.

"The legislation we have introduced will stop those individuals who wish to come to the UK to spread their message of extremism and hatred. Mr Geert is someone who has a pathological hatred of Islam and his presence in the UK would be extremely provocative and completely unacceptable," Malik said.

Lord Ahmed also welcomed Home Secretary Jacqui Smith's decision to stop Wilders from entering the UK.

"This man is facing serious charges of inciting hatred and discrimination in Amsterdam, and has incited hatred amongst the communities in the UK. The film already is accessible via the Internet, and therefore there is little we can do to stop parliamentarians here in the UK from viewing the film. This film creates hatred and further segregates communities," he said.

Britain banned the entry of the controversial right-wing Dutch politician on Tuesday. Wilders had been invited by the by UK Independence Party peer Lord Pearson to show the anti-Islam film and hold a Question and Answer session in parliament. (ANI)