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.

New cross-party group set up to protect country from Labour’s attacks on free speech

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However the celebrity signing is newly-ennobled peer Toby Young, a long-time free speech advocate who set up the Free Speech Union in 2019 to not only campaign against cancel culture but also defend individuals whose jobs and positions have been threatened by anti-free speech campaigners. He was installed in the House of Lords yesterday after being nominated for a peerage by Kemi Badenoch.

Christian Calgie, The Express, 29th January 2025.

Free speech matters to Kemi Badenoch and it should matter to you

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As the authors take their place in the House of Lords today, they write of the importance of upholding free expression in Britain.

Nigel Biggar and Toby Young, The Telegraph, 28th January 2025.

Starmer’s political prisoners, pt. 2

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Another to have pleaded not guilty to a speech offence, 45-year-old former Royal Marine Jamie Michael, was successfully bailed and will stand trial next month, defended by the Free Speech Union.

Laurie Wastell, The Critic, 23rd January 2025.

Starmer’s ‘masterclass in obfuscation’ over Southport murders

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While some posts crossed the line into illegality and led to prosecutions, the Free Speech Union saw many cases where lawful commentary was unfairly targeted.

Dr Frederick Attenborough, TCW, 23rd January 2025.