Bridget Phillipson’s first act as Education Secretary was to propose revoking the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act, a vital piece of legislation which was designed to strengthen the right of students and academics to discuss, debate, and debunk each other’s views. The Telegraph has the story.
Bridget Phillipson tried to pull the plug on new free speech laws in her first act as Education Secretary just days after the general election.
High Court documents show Ms Phillipson received a briefing from Department for Education (DfE) officials in July on how she could go about revoking new laws promoting academic freedom.
She took the university sector by surprise when she announced on July 26 that she was shelving the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act, just six days before it was due to come into force.
Ms Phillipson said at the time that she had chosen to “stop” the flagship Tory legislation before it was set to be implemented on Aug 1 “in order to consider options, including its repeal”.
However, court documents obtained by The Telegraph reveal that the Education Secretary had already sought advice weeks before that on how to scrap the main elements of the free speech legislation.
In a briefing addressed to Ms Phillipson on July 8, the Monday after Labour swept to power, DfE officials said: “We understand you do not wish to implement the main provisions of the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023.
“A decision is needed on whether to allow the commencement of the provisions of the Act that are due to come into force on Aug 1, or to pause.”
The DfE document informed Ms Phillipson that failure to intervene over the Act would mean the legislation automatically going live at the start of August.
It said: “Therefore, immediate decisions are needed to revoke these regulations following which you can consider different options relating to repeal of the Act”.
It suggests that Ms Phillipson set the wheels in motion to shelve the flagship Tory legislation just days after the general election, in her first major act as Education Secretary.
The Telegraph understands that it came after she consulted Jewish groups and other interested parties over their concerns about the legislation while still in the Opposition.
Days after she entered office, DfE officials advised Ms Phillipson on various courses of action for scaling back the free speech legislation.
Documents show the Education Secretary was told she should “consider whether you wish to repeal the Act, in part or in full, or leave it on the statute book without the main provisions commenced”.
The Act, which received royal assent in May 2023, would have introduced a new complaints scheme for academics, students and visiting speakers concerned about free speech violations on campus.
It would have also allowed victims of “cancel culture” at universities to seek compensation through a statutory tort.
Ms Phillipson’s decision to mothball the laws has received widespread backlash from academics, who have argued that it leaves them vulnerable to being “hounded, censured and silenced” for holding legitimate views some may deem offensive.
Sources close to the discussions told The Telegraph that they were furious that the Act has been painted as a “Tory hate charter” designed to stoke the culture wars.
The Education Secretary insisted that the move followed concerns from Jewish groups that the Act could have created a platform for hate speech on campus.
Critics have branded the suggestion a red herring, insisting that the legislation would only have strengthened protections for free speech “within the law”.
Ms Phillipson now faces legal action over her decision to pull the plug on the Act, after the Free Speech Union was granted permission to appeal the move.
A judicial review hearing is set to take place in the High Court on Jan 23.
The Free Speech Union has argued that Ms Phillipson’s decision to pause the legislation went beyond her ministerial powers.
In submissions to the High Court, it suggested that the move granted her a mechanism for kicking the Act in the long grass indefinitely, without needing primary legislation to formally repeal the free speech laws.
Worth reading in full.
To find out more about the FSU’s efforts to challenge the government’s attempt to undermine the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act click here.
For almost 350 years, the governance of Britain has rested on the premise that ministers may not set aside laws made by Parliament. But the new government, flushed with power and ideological fervour, threw that principle to the wind. We believe the legal position is clear: the right to free speech, as protected by our sovereign Parliament, cannot be treated with such contempt.
The fact that the Administrative Court has given permission for this case to be heard in the High Court on January 23rd means that the FSU has, at the very least, an arguable case.
You can donate to the crowdfunder we’ve set up to help us pay our costs in that case here.
