Woke Channel 4 bosses hit iconic sitcom Father Ted with a trigger warning due to ‘racial impersonations and language’

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Free Speech Union leader Toby Young also slammed the move to put a trigger warning on the episode. He said: “The language and behaviour was ‘offensive’ in 1998 – that was the point.  This episode was mocking the hyper-sensitivity of our age, something that was already apparent 27 years ago. For Channel 4 to attach a trigger warning shows that nothing has changed. The scolds and finger-waggers are as humourless as ever.”

Laura Fox, MailOnline, 12th February 2025.

Britain Reportedly Willing to Roll Back Tech Censorship to Avoid Trump Trade War

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The founder of Britain’s Free Speech Union (FSU), Lord Young of Acton, relayed similar concerns, saying: “If Ofcom tries to fine X or Facebook 10 per cent of their global turnover for not removing content that isn’t unlawful, I predict a showdown between Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and the UK Government. If that happens, Trump will side with his tech bros and tell Sir Keir that if he wants a trade deal, he’ll call off his dogs.”

Kurt Zindulka, Breitbart, 10th February 2025.

Don’t say ‘able-bodied’ — use ‘non-disabled’, Britain’s tourist board tells guides

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Lord Young, founder of the Free Speech Union, criticised the recommendation.

He said: “What’s next? ‘Non-blind’ instead of ‘20:20 vision’? ‘Non-deaf’ instead of ‘perfect hearing’? Will we have to describe Marilyn Monroe in future as ‘non-ginger’ instead of ‘blonde’?”

Tim Sigsworth, The Telegraph, 8th February 2025.

‘Labour reported me for racial hatred after Southport – a court cleared me in less than 20 minutes’

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On Feb 4, a jury at Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court was told that Mr Michael had been “unrelentingly negative” towards migrants in a clip he had distributed to stir up racial hatred.

However, his barrister, paid for by the Free Speech Union (FSU), which campaigns to protect freedom of speech, insisted it was “beyond obvious” he was not referring to all migrants, explaining how his main cut and thrust had been for more security in schools to protect children.

When the jury retired the next day to consider its verdict, Mr Michael bought a cup of tea, anticipating a long wait. The drink was still piping hot when he was summoned to hear their not guilty verdict.

Steve Bird, The Telegraph, 7th February 2025.

Backdoor Blasphemy: Leftist British Government to Reportedly Establish a ‘Council on Islamophobia’

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The Free Speech Union warned that the formalisation of such a definition by the government would result in more people being criminalised for their speech in the UK, saying that “if Labour gets its way, even more voices will be silenced.”

“Once adopted as official guidance for public bodies, individuals could face accusations of Islamophobia simply for criticising aspects of Islam or Islamic practices,” the FSU wrote on X.

“In the worst case, such remarks could even be treated as ‘stirring up religious hatred’ under Part 3A of the Public Order Act 1986, risking criminal charges and jail time.”

Kurt Zindulka, Breitbart, 5th February 2025.

The persecution of Jamie Michael

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Earlier today, following a two-day trial at Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court, Jamie was acquitted by a jury. They took just 17 minutes to find him not guilty.

I was Jamie’s defence solicitor. Adam King was Jamie’s superb barrister. We were supported by the Free Speech Union. In the lead-up to the trial, we tried repeatedly to get the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to drop the case. We argued that Jamie’s Facebook post ought to be protected by Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights. We argued that what he said did not come close to meeting the standard for a criminal prosecution.

Luke Gittos, Spiked, 5th February 2025.

Campaigners warn police are bringing ‘Sharia law to British streets’ after case against man who filmed himself setting fire to Quran

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In a letter to the force, Lord Young, general secretary of the Free Speech Union raised concerns about the defendant’s safety as a consequence. He claimed that the case ‘should never have been a police matter, adding the decision to name Frost ‘may well have placed him in great jeopardy’.

Richard Marsden and Olivia Christie, Daily Mail, 5th February 2025.

Do not call fat people obese, ‘sensitivity’ guide tells NHS workers

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Lord Young, the founder of the Free Speech Union, said the advice would do a “fat lot of help”.

“The obsessive language policing by woke mandarins is symptomatic of the intellectual vacuity of the progressive Left, who now think that the way to help disadvantaged people – sorry, the ‘underserved’ – is to relabel them in a more politically correct way,” he told The Telegraph. “A fat lot of help that will be, if I’m allowed to use that word. What a ‘person with obesity’ needs is not a nice new label, but a GP appointment so they can get a prescription for Ozempic.”

Tim Sigsworth, The Telegraph, 3rd February 2025.

Beware this terrible new AI email feature

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A friend of mine got a nasty shock last week after a Google Meet call, thanks to a new AI function that he was unaware of. On this occasion, the consequences were quite funny, but on another day his failure to get his head around this new technology could have ended his career.

Toby Young, The Spectator, 1st February 2025.

James Tooley’s ordeal is over – but why was he ever suspended?

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It’s wonderful to hear that Professor James Tooley, the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Buckingham, has been reinstated after a gruelling, four-month investigation. James is a member of the Free Speech Union, the organisation I run, and we’ve been helping him navigate this Kafkaesque ordeal. The KC hired by Buckingham to carry out the investigation has concluded that all the allegations against him are without substance, which raises questions about why James was suspended from his post in the first place.

Toby Young, The Spectator, 29th January 2025.