Bridget Phillipson to revive free speech laws after backlash from academics

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Ms Phillipson is facing legal action after the Free Speech Union (FSU) launched a High Court case against her suspension of the Act, with a judicial review set to take place on Jan 23. Losing would be a humiliating episode for the Government. The FSU has argued that Ms Phillipson’s decision to pause the legislation went beyond her ministerial powers.

Poppy Wood, The Telegraph, 14th January 2025.

Speake for England, Martin!

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A well-reasoned intervention, you might think — especially considering the recent Employment Tribunal ruling in the case of Free Speech Union (FSU) member Sean Corby, which affirmed that opposition to CRT constitutes a protected philosophical belief under the Equality Act 2010 (“EqA”). While this ruling emerged from the specific context of an Employment Tribunal, it’s an important precedent that reinforces the legal protections around philosophical beliefs, especially those challenging dominant ideologies.

Freddie Attenborough, The Critic, 14th January 2025.

‘Islamophobia’ and the grooming gangs scandal

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Christian Concern’s Tim Dieppe, in a briefing for the Free Speech Union (FSU) published last year, warned that such a definition could severely curtail free speech, with people biting their tongues for fear of being branded Islamophobic.

Freddie Attenborough, The Spectator, 12th January 2025.

WOKE JOKE Woke council bans staff from asking people for their ‘Christian name’ over risk of offending snowflakes

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However, Free Speech Union founder Toby Young said: “This is woke hyper-sensitivity taken to ridiculous lengths. I’ve never met a Jew, a ­Muslim or an atheist offended by the words ‘Christian name’.”

Thomas Godfrey, The Sun, 12th January 2025.

UK Monitoring of Musk Online Reveals “Pathetic” Priorities

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Priority concerns aside, Free Speech Union director Toby Young told europeanconservative.com that “the idea the taxpayer needs to fund a government unit to ‘monitor’ Elon Musk’s tweets is ridiculous” since “it costs nothing to open an account on X and once you’ve done that Elon’s tweets are completely unavoidable. What”, asked Young, “is the government’s ‘report’ going to consist of? “A compendium of those tweets? You can see all of them by clicking on Elon’s avatar and it’s completely free.”

Michael Curzon, European Conservative, 10th January 2025.

Je suis Charlie, ten years on

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That is why, ten years on, the Free Speech Union stands in solidarity with Charlie Hebdo, ensuring that the legacy of those who were murdered endures. This unthinkable atrocity was not merely an attack on a magazine. It was an attack on the principle that no idea, no belief, no religious figure is beyond satire. It was an attempt to impose, through violence, a prohibition on critique. To yield to such demands is to surrender the freedoms that underpin our societies.

Freddie Attenborough, The Critic, 7th January 2025.

Boss of Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists is forced to issue a grovelling apology – after accidentally following Tommy Robinson on X

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Toby Young, from the Free Speech Union, said: “No one should be penalised for following anyone, let alone a key participant in an ongoing public debate. We cannot hope to solve any of the major problems besetting our society unless we get out of our echo chambers and engage in dialogue with people from all sides.”

Andy Jehring, MailOnline, 6th January 2025.

Can I be cancelled twice?

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One of the biggest regrets of my life was saying yes when Jo Johnson asked if I wanted to be on the board of the Office for Students (OfS) in the autumn of 2017. It wasn’t a particularly prestigious position: the OfS was to be a new regulator of higher education in England and I would be one of 15 non-executive directors. But because it was a public appointment it would be made by the prime minister, which meant I was a political target. When it was announced on 1 January 2018, the offence archaeologists went to work, sifting through everything I’d said or written dating back 30 years in the hope of finding evidence that I wasn’t a suitable person to take up the role. The idea was to force me out, embarrass Theresa May and end my career into the bargain.

Toby Young, The Spectator, 4th January 2025.

Starmer faces free speech row with Trump

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Toby Young, the founder of the Free Speech Union, who is soon to become a member of the House of Lords, said the issue would be a “flashpoint” between the White House and Number 10 and would “colour Mr Trump’s perception of Sir Keir and his regime”.

Gordon Raynor, The Telegraph, 3rd January 2025.

JOIN THE FIGHT: Free Speech Union seeks your support to challenge Labour’s attack on Free Speech Law

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The Free Speech Union has launched a legal challenge against the Education Secretary, claiming the government’s move to pause the Act is unlawful. In a statement, the FSU said:

“For almost 350 years, the governance of Britain has rested on the premise that ministers may not set aside laws made by Parliament. The right to free speech, as protected by our sovereign Parliament, cannot be treated with such contempt.”

The Conservative Post, 30th December 2024.