A far-right Dutch politician will attempt to defy a government ban on his entering the UK tomorrow, amid a diplomatic row over his right to visit.

Geert Wilders, an outspoken anti-Islamist, will fly into Heathrow in a bid to attend a screening of his controversial film Fitna at the House of Lords by Lord Pearson, the UKIP peer. Mr Wilders said that he was unrepentant: "I'll see what happens at the border. Let them put me in handcuffs."

The film features verses from the Koran alongside images of terrorist attacks in New York, London and Madrid and calls on Muslims to remove “hate-preaching” verses from the Koran. Lord Pearson said that the screening would go ahead even without Mr Wilders.

The Home Office’s decision yesterday to refuse Mr Wilders entry on account of his extreme views provoked Maxime Verhagen, the Dutch Foreign Secretary to call David Miliband to protest at the decision.

"The fact that a Dutch parliamentarian is refused entry to another EU country is highly regrettable”, Mr Verhagen said. He revealed his conversation with Mr Miliband via a posting on his Twitter website.

It is understood that Mr Wilders is being denied entry under EU law which allows a member state to refuse individuals from other member states if they constitute a threat to public policy, security or health.

Since 2005, 270 people have excluded from entering the UK on suspicion of being a threat to national security or fostering extremism, including 79 'preachers of hate'.

Mr Wilders said that he received a letter from the British ambassador yesterday, telling him that he was not welcome because his visit would “threaten community harmony and therefore public security". He faces likely deportation when he lands at Heathrow tomorrow.

The Home Office refused to comment specifically on Mr Wilders but a spokesperson said: "The Government opposes extremism in all its forms. It will stop those who want to spread extremism, hatred and violent messages in our communities from coming to our country and that was the driving force behind tighter rules on exclusions for unacceptable behaviour that the Home Secretary announced on in October last year”.

Mr Wilders, the leader of the Dutch Freedom Party, insisted today that he was “not an extremist”. He has been under 24 hours police protection since 2004 in Holland, where he faces prosecution for incitement to hatred and discrimination based on the content of Fitna and his calls for the Koran to be banned under a Dutch law which bans Mein Kampf.

The film sparked violent protests in Indonesia and Pakistan and, following its release online last year, al-Qaeda issued a fatwa calling for Mr Wilders’ murder.

The film screening was originally due to take place in January at the invitation of Baroness Cox, who will chair tomorrow's discussion of the film. It received strong opposition from Muslim groups and peers such as Lord Ahmed, who supported the Government’s decision to deny Mr Wilders entry.

Lord Ahmed denies allegations in the Spectator that he had "threatened the House of Lords authorities that he would bring a force of 10,000 Muslims to lay siege to the Lords if Wilders was allowed to speak". Lord Ahmed told The Times that he was considering legal action against the Spectator. A spokesman for the House of Lords did not comment on the allegation.

Lord Ahmed said he had received “dozens if not hundreds of hate mail and threats as a result of Fitna” but told The Times he would not protest the screening of the film in Mr Wilders’ absence.

Baroness Cox said the original screening was delayed not because of alleged threats but because she was made aware of Mr Wilders' calls for the Koran to be banned shortly before the event and she disagreed with them. In a joint statement, Baroness Cox and Lord Pearson insisted that they were promoting freedom of speech:

"We do not agree with Geert Wilders that the Koran should be banned.... Geert Wilder's 'Fitna' film is not a threat to anyone. It merely suggests how the Koran has been used by militant Islamists to promote and justify their violence. They react in fury and menace to our intention to show the film and have boasted that their threats of aggressive demonstrations prevented its previous showing in the Mother of Parliaments. This was not the case – the event was postponed to clarify issues of freedom of speech.

Lord Pearson said he was confident that showing the film would not place him in breach UK incitement to religious hatred laws, but said he would not support Mr Wilders being in the UK illegally.

The Home Office endorsed the Dutch Government’s condemnation of the film, which they said “serves no constructive purpose”.

“The British Government has absolutely no connection with any screening of this film that may take place in the House of Lords or anywhere else in the UK,” a spokesperson said.

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