London – The UK is facing a freedom of speech crisis with a new left-wing government, over-reach police and courts cracking down on freedom of expression.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer, leader of the ruling Labour Party, and his government, which has been in power for just two months, have been accused of rolling back free speech protections for security reasons and failing to eradicate selective enforcement of the law.
“British people are fundamentally entitled to freedom of speech, but this has been growing over the past few years,” Lois McClatchy Miller, senior legal communications officer at Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) UK, told Fox News Digital. “There is finally a wider recognition that certain groups, depending on their beliefs, are much more vulnerable to having their freedom of speech restricted than other groups who hold different views.”
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Police officers confront protesters during an anti-immigration demonstration outside a Holiday Inn Express in Rotherham, England, Sunday, August 4, 2024. (Danny Lawson/PA via The Associated Press) (Danny Lawson/PA via The Associated Press)
Widespread rioting on English streets last month and the heavy-handed response to social unrest has reignited the debate over freedom of speech.
The UK has long grappled with strict policing of online speech. In 2019, former police officer Harry Miller was investigated after social media posts questioning whether transgender women were real women were deemed transphobic. Miller's posts were recorded by police as a “non-criminal hate incident,” and he challenged the designation in court. In 2020, a UK court ruled in Miller's favour, but failed to change guidelines allowing police to pursue people over online comments.
Nigel Farage, leader of the Reform Party, complained about double standards on equal application of the law in a speech to Parliament: “Establishment MPs can slam me all they want but the British people are angry that they live under a dual police and justice system,” he wrote to X.
The government directly drew attention to these laws last month, warning citizens to be careful about posting content that could be deemed offensive and carry the threat of prison time. The Public Prosecutor's Office posted a warning on social media platform X, which was then disseminated by official government social media accounts, advising citizens to “think before you post!”
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer leaves 10 Downing Street to attend the weekly Prime Minister's Questions in Parliament in London, Wednesday, July 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein) (AP Photo/Frank Augstein)
“Content that incites violence and hatred is not only harmful, but potentially illegal,” they wrote. “Child Protection Services take online violence seriously and will prosecute where legal thresholds are met. Please tell those you care about that they must share responsibly or face the consequences.” The post added that “the UK government is cracking down on people sharing social media posts about the UK riots that they have deemed 'likely to incite racial hatred.'”
At the same time, the government has launched measures to force social media companies to suppress what it considers to be “fake news” and lawful content it deems harmful, to avoid inciting social unrest. The new measures will expand the reach of UK online safety laws by targeting social media companies and holding them accountable for legal but harmful content.
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On September 7, 2024, anti-Israel protesters gathered in central London and marched to the Israeli Embassy in London, England. (Wiktor Szymanowicz/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said the current system was “not fit for purpose” and urged Starmer's government to quickly implement changes to online safety laws.
“I think the government quickly realised that they needed to revise online safety laws,” Khan said in an interview. Guardian“I think what the government needs to do urgently is to make sure it's fit for purpose. I don't think it's fit for purpose.”
But concerns about freedom of speech in the UK extend beyond online, with double standards being applied to differing views and political protests.
“This is 2024, not 1984.”
During a pro-Hamas demonstration in London last weekend, pro-Israel counter-protesters Mark Birbeck and Niyak Ghorbani, who were holding signs reading “Hamas is terrorist”, were arrested on suspicion of disturbing the peace after the counter-protesters' presence had allegedly disrupted the demonstration and they were arrested following a scuffle with police.
Ghorbani is a well-known Iranian anti-Hamas dissident who, after being arrested for opposing protests, the Metropolitan police tried to ban him from taking part in future anti-Israel protests as part of his bail conditions. A court rebuked the police and ruled in April that such bail conditions were disproportionate and unnecessary. On social media, the new prime minister's policies have been dubbed “Dual Kiir.”
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British Christian preacher Dear Moodley has embroiled in a legal battle with police after authorities banned him from commenting about other religions during street sermons. (Dear Moodley)
“On the one hand, environmental activists, such as anti-oil activists, and pro-Palestinian and sometimes pro-Hamas protesters are widely allowed to express their beliefs, sometimes using very violent language,” Reuss said. “But when you think about different types of protests, such as Christians praying near places of worship, they often face much stricter restrictions.”
For example, Dear Moodley, a Christian pastor and occasional street evangelist, was forced to sue his local police after they prohibited him from “speaking about other religions or comparing them with Christianity” or “speaking about the beliefs of atheists or people who believe in evolution.” Moodley won his case in court earlier this year, with the police admitting that the restrictions on his freedom of speech were “disproportionate.”
Some people on social media have responded to the new prime minister's policies by calling them a “two-tiered keel.”
Meanwhile, Christian veteran Adam Smith-Connor is due to appear in court next week to face fines and criminal charges for praying quietly near an abortion facility. Local authorities argued that his silent prayer violated the so-called “buffer zone,” a designated area where people can express support or opposition to abortion.
OCTOBER 16: Hundreds of people took part in a protest called by the National Jewish Congress, the Campaign Against Antisemitism and the British Israel Lawyers Association at the BBC's headquarters in London, UK, on October 16, 2023. The National Jewish Congress was protesting the BBC's refusal to designate Hamas as a terrorist organisation, following recent attacks on Israel by the extremist group. Hamas was designated a terrorist organisation by the UK in March 2021. (Photo by Guy Smallman/Getty Images) (Getty Images)
“Silent prayer is not, and never will be, a crime, but the prosecution of Adam Smith-Connor, who served in Afghanistan defending fundamental freedoms for all, marks an authoritarian move towards 'thought policing' in the UK. It's 2024, not 1984, but it clearly exposes the state's determination to crack down on even silent Christian beliefs whilst protecting the free expression of those who hold different views,” McClatchy Miller said.
But there is growing backlash against the administration's anti-free speech stance, particularly its decision to suspend and in some cases completely repeal free speech laws in higher education over safety concerns.
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More than 600 academics and intellectuals, including seven Nobel Prize winners, have signed a letter urging the government to reconsider its decision to shelve the law. The London Times reported.The law was a flagship policy passed by the previous Conservative government to protect the free speech rights of students and researchers on campuses.
“Decision to suspend [the act] “This seems to reflect a widespread view amongst opponents that UK universities do not have a 'free speech problem'. This could not be more wrong: over the past 20 years hundreds of academics and students have been hounded, criticised, silenced or even sacked for expressing legal opinions,” the letter reads.
