Scottish free speech
The Free Speech Union has covered 59 stories on this topic. Browse our coverage below.
18 April 2026
Censored poet and FSU member Polly Clark fights back
T.S. Eliot Prize-shortlisted poet Polly Clark had her book removed from a prestigious literary magazine after a single complaint about her gender-critical social media posts — and the Free Speech Union helped her fight back.
12 December 2025
Police Scotland apologise to Tory MSP over NCHI double standards
3 June 2025
Police accused of vilifying gender-critical views as ‘Nazi’ in internal communication
2 April 2025
Police watchdog orders fresh inquiry after Police Scotland mishandles free speech complaint by FSU
19 January 2025
Banished from history! Scottish education chiefs axe the word ‘slave’ from exams to ‘decolonise’ curriculum
12 January 2025
SNP government bans birthday cake in nurseries
9 December 2024
As Town Hall chiefs get permission to hike council taxes, now 'cash-strapped' SNP local authority shells out on 'woke' staff training
24 June 2024
Edinburgh Fringe venue threatens to pull play about JK Rowling’s trans rows
5 June 2024
Trans rights activists help SNP set up a new NHS child gender service
25 May 2024
Literary society tells bookshops not to sell ‘Terf’ books
18 May 2024
Scottish Greens expel members who believe in ‘biological sex’
15 May 2024
Nearly half of Scots want country’s Hate Crime Act repealed amid free speech fears, according to new poll
8 May 2024
Clinicians could fear prosecution under SNP’s ‘conversion therapy’ ban, says Hilary Cass
29 April 2024
Humza Yousaf resigns - what next for Scotland's hate crime regime?
29 April 2024
Scotland: Thirty Days of Hate Crime Laws
24 April 2024
Just 0.6pc of new SNP ‘hate crime’ reports deemed criminal offences
24 April 2024
Will the trans activists who cancelled me ever apologise?
18 April 2024
BBC Scotland accused of pandering to trans activists in Cass Review coverage
16 April 2024
Humza Yousaf faces Tory vote to repeal hate crime law
15 April 2024
How the SNP became trapped by ‘woke groupthink’ — and why it matters
15 April 2024
Stand-up comic says legislation puts comedians at risk of being punished for tongue-in-cheek gags
11 April 2024
Hate Crime call handlers given script defending First Minister Humza Yousaf
10 April 2024
JK Rowling is wasting police time with hate law ‘provocations’, suggests SNP
10 April 2024
Just 4pc of new SNP ‘hate crime’ reports deemed criminal offences
10 April 2024
Police chief reveals SNP could extend hate crime laws to offer trans people more protection
10 April 2024
Scotland’s Hate Crime Act may have done us all a favour
9 April 2024
Scotland’s hate crime act is stifling academic freedom
8 April 2024
Scotland’s Hate Crime Act being “exploited” to fuel personal and political vendettas
7 April 2024
Feminists accuse pro-trans activists of ‘intimidation’ on Scottish march
5 April 2024
FSU establishes free speech hotline in response to Scotland’s new hate crime law
5 April 2024
Humza Yousaf says Police Scotland is ‘reviewing’ guidance on NCHIs following the intervention by Murdo Fraser and the FSU
4 April 2024
Conservative MSP writes to Police Scotland chief over political bias in ‘non-crime hate incident’ recording
4 April 2024
It’s not just truer of Scotland, Britain is no longer a free country
4 April 2024
Online comments made by JK Rowling not recorded as non-crime hate incident, Police Scotland confirms
4 April 2024
SNP conversion therapy ban ‘risks criminalising prayer and parental guidance’
4 April 2024
Tory MSP recorded for hate incident furious as police refuse to record NCHI against Humza Yousaf
3 April 2024
Fight the Scottish Hate Crime Bill, halt the rise of the Orwellian non-crime hate incident
3 April 2024
How Scotland ended up with the Hate Crime Act
3 April 2024
JK Rowling will not face prosecution under Scotland hate crime law
2 April 2024
JK Rowling challenges police: Arrest me under Scottish hate crime law
2 April 2024
Scotland’s new hate crime law could be used to ‘settle scores’, say critics
30 March 2024
How Scotland became an Orwellian nightmare
28 March 2024
Fight the Scottish Hate Crime Act
28 March 2024
“Orwellian” Police Scotland blacklist of ‘hate incidents’
26 March 2024
Policing of free speech must end
25 March 2024
Edinburgh fringe will be “busier than normal” for police due to SNP’s crackdown on free speech
25 March 2024
Humza Yousaf’s ‘Tory free’ Scotland is no longer free
25 March 2024
MSP threatens legal action against Police Scotland over ‘hate incident’ tweet claim, with the support of the FSU
25 March 2024
Police Scotland admits investigation policy risks helping criminals
23 March 2024
Scotland's hate crime law a threat to freedom of speech, says author Val McDermid
22 March 2024
Free speech warning from Scotland's police watchdog on new hate crime law
22 March 2024
Police Scotland accused of parodying JK Rowling with gender critical ‘Jo’ character in hate crime training
21 March 2024
Humza Yousaf’s hate crime law labelled a “chilling” threat to freedom of speech by Rishi Sunak
21 March 2024
Police Scotland accused of parodying JK Rowling with gender critical ‘Jo’ character in hate crime training
19 March 2024
JK Rowling vows to defy “ludicrous” new hate crime laws
18 March 2024
Parents face 7 years’ jail if they challenge “puberty blocker law”
13 March 2024
SNP’s hate crime law activated despite fears over free speech
19 February 2024
Scottish Labour accused of “silencing” gender critical women members
14 February 2024
Edinburgh University staff and students launch attempt to cancel new gender-critical Rector
