I wrote to Dr James Mannion, the CEO of Rethinking Education, about his decision to no-platform Dr Alka Sehgal-Cuthbert, the Director of Don’t Divide Us, from a one-day education conference because some of the other speakers and delegates had objected that her presence would make them feel ‘unsafe’. I asked him to apologise to Dr Sehgal-Cuthbert and arrange for her to speak at a future event, which he duly did

The Free Speech Union has written to Professor Sir Malcolm Evans, Master of Regent’s Park College, about the College’s Trans Inclusion Statement, which is based on a misunderstanding of the Equality Act 2010. The Statement stipulates that any “unlawful discriminatory behaviour, including transphobic harassment or bullying by individuals or groups, will be dealt with under the College’s Policy on Harassment and Bullying and within the relevant legislation, the Equality Act

The Free Speech Union has written to the Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police to complain about the arrest of a 16 year-old autistic girl who compared a Women Police Officer to her ‘lesbian nana’. She was told she was being arrested for ‘homophobic hate speech’, but we don’t think her speech meets the criminal offence threshold under the Public Order Act 2006. We also point out that if the

In the course of our work we come across some pretty egregious equity, diversity and inclusion policies, but the South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust’s ‘Transitioning at Work and Gender Diversity Policy’ is the worst yet. This NHS Trust is effectively telling female Muslim employees that if they refuse to use – or express any concerns about using – toilets or showers with trans-identifying biological males they will face

We’ve written to the Proctors of Oxford University, who are responsible for student discipline, to complain about the decision by Oxford University Students’ Union (OUSU) to ban the Oxford Union from having a stall at the next Freshers’ Fair, seemingly in response to the Union’s refusal to no-platform Kathleen Stock. Kathleen is due to give a talk at the Union on 31st May and the Union has come under enormous

In February, a group of students at Sheffield University tried to set up a free speech society, but when they applied for official recognition from the Students’ Union it was declined. The group appealed and won, but have now been told their society is a “red risk”. That means they must attend “risk assessment” training and cannot invite any speakers on to campus without first having to submit a list

We’ve written to St John’s College and the University of Cambridge asking for the urgent reinstatement of a film screening organised by student Charlie Bentley-Astor which the College has cancelled. She intended to show the film Birthgap – Childless World with director Stephen Shaw, but student activists threatened protests – apparently for the ludicrous reason that Shaw had appeared on Jordan Peterson’s podcast. The College had already imposed prohibitive security

We’ve written to the Proctors of Oxford University, who are responsible for student discipline, to complain about the decision by Oxford University Students’ Union (OUSU) to ban the Oxford Union from having a stall at the next Freshers’ Fair, seemingly in response to the Union’s refusal to no-platform Kathleen Stock. Kathleen is due to give a talk at the Union on 31st May and the Union has come under enormous

On April 20th, Ofcom, the broadcasting watchdog, reprimanded both ITV and London Live for comments made by Eamonn Holmes and David Icke about links between 5G technology and coronavirus. Holmes’s sin, according to the regulator, was to say on ITV’s This Morning that the theory linking 5G and coronavirus deserved to be discussed in the mainstream media, even though he agreed with his co-presenter that it was “not true and

We’ve written to Helen Stephenson, the CEO of the Charity Commission, asking her to open an investigation into Jamia Masjid Swafia. This is the mosque in Wakefield where the mother of a 14 year-old autistic boy accused of mistreating a copy of the Quran – he accidentally dropped it – sat on a panel, head covered by a veil, while the Imam warned that the Muslim community wouldn’t tolerate any