As reported in the Telegraph, the Free Speech Union has threatened legal action after a Labour-run council imposed a controversial new order which threatens on-the-spot fines of £100 for swearing in the street. The report continues:
Thanet District Council is facing the legal challenge after adopting a Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) that bans behaviour that might “distress” people.
It means any of its 130,000 residents, or visitors to the Kent coastal region, could be fined for “using language or behaviour causing or likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress to any other person”.
People could also face punishment if using a public space “otherwise in accordance with its intended use, or when directed not to do so by an authorised officer”.
There is also a prohibition on congregating while being “abusive, alarming, threatening, insulting, intimidating, harassing, distressing or otherwise causing a disturbance to other members of the public”.
Campaigners against the misuse of PSPOs say the Thanet order, which runs for one year, is one of the “worst” they have seen. They say it effectively criminalises free speech by creating a strict liability offence which depends on the judgment of local officials, with no legal safeguards.
The Free Speech Union, which campaigns against restrictions to individual liberty, has written to the council ahead of launching a potential lawsuit unless it changes course.
The campaign group argues that the Thanet PSPO could criminalise, for example, a legitimate political protest outside the council offices, or a religious preacher standing in the town centre giving a sermon on “Christian beliefs about sexuality”.
They argue that an atheist activist giving a public speech in which they denied the existence of God and mocked Christianity could also fall foul of the order.
The provision in the Thanet PSPO which prohibits the use of language or behaviour gives the example: “This includes comments and behaviour, being cruel, pejorative, or of a demeaning nature that results in a loss of dignity or respect for women and girls.”
PSPOs were first introduced by Parliament in 2014, but their original aim was to help councils manage issues such as prostitution, begging, loitering or drinking alcohol in specific areas.
Officials are empowered to impose a fixed-penalty fine of up to £100, or a court can impose a £1,000 fine where a breach is identified.
In a statement on the Thanet PSPO, the Free Speech Union said: “This is the worst one we have seen.
“This order would apply to the entire built-up area around the Thanet coastline, and is a draconian measure, which would restrict the freedom of expression of 130,000 residents plus the roughly four million tourists who visit Thanet each year.
“People within the area covered can now be fined or even face a criminal conviction for ‘causing a disturbance to others’ or being ‘pejorative’ in public, among other things.
“It effectively imposes a strict liability speech offence, with none of the safeguards which Parliament and the courts have deemed necessary when restricting people’s fundamental rights and liberties.”
Worth reading in full.
