The UK must tackle the “chilling effect” of cancel culture amid growing threats to democracy, Rishi Sunak has said.
As reported in the Telegraph, the Prime Minister was speaking at the Society of Editors conference in London, the Prime Minister warned against the dangers of “shutting down people’s views and making people fear speaking out”, saying: “That’s not who we are. That’s not what this country stands for.” The report continues:
He added: “Democracy depends on the ability to air our views, to challenge and interrogate people’s standpoints and to learn from different perspectives and experiences.
“And if we value a liberal, pluralistic society, we cannot allow one group of people to say their experiences are more important than others.”
Mr Sunak warned that the erosion of free speech was particularly concerning as Britain faces a growing threat from Russia, Iran, North Korea and China.
He branded these countries an “axis of authoritarian states” who are “united by their shared antipathy to our values and to our freedoms, and are growing more assertive all the time”.
The Prime Minister said: “It just shows that our values, and the principles that this body was founded on, are more important than ever.”
The comments come after the Government intervened to block the sale of The Telegraph to RedBird IMI, an Abu Dhabi-backed investment fund, amid concerns over the impact on press freedom.
The UAE currently ranks 145th out of 180 countries included in the World Press Freedom Index. Campaign group Reporters Without Borders (RSF), which compiles the Index, says the country’s government “prevents both local and foreign independent media outlets from thriving by tracking down and persecuting dissenting voices”.
RedBird IMI, which is majority backed by Manchester City owner Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed, on Tuesday said it had formally abandoned its takeover bid as it admitted the deal was “no longer feasible”.
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