Free speech is under threat in Germany Opinion Historian and CityAM columnist Rainer Zitelmann finds himself in the crossfire of Germany’s free-speech debate I will turn 69 in June, and it is the first time in my life that I have come into conflict with the law. At the beginning of February I received a letter from the Berlin police: “Written statement [...]
Do young people still have confidence in the Oxford Union? Opinion Why does the row over the president of the Oxford Union celebrating Charlie Kirk’s murder matter? Asks James Price As a dog returneth to its vomit, so a fool returneth to his folly. And so I return to student politics, yet again. Five years after I accidentally became the oldest ever president of the Oxford [...]
On this day: The Bill of Rights is set in motion Opinion On this day in 1789, the Bill of Rights was sent to the states for ratification. With the right to free speech still hotly contested 300 years later, Eliot Wilson goes back to the start.
The Debate: This house has confidence in the president-elect of the Oxford Union September 16, 2025 Following the horrifying death of Charlie Kirk, the president-elect of the Oxford Union, George Abaraonye, posted comments online appearing to celebrate his murder. Since then, many have called for him to be removed from the post. The whole affair has raised questions about the necessity and limits of free speech in a democracy – and [...]
Government defends Online Safety Act after X claims it threatens free speech August 2, 2025 The Government has defended the Online Safety Act after Elon Musk’s X said the legislation was threatening free speech. In a post titled What Happens When Oversight Becomes Overreach, the platform, formerly known as Twitter, outlined criticism of the act and the “heavy-handed” UK regulators. The Government countered that it is “demonstrably false” that the [...]
Censorship is the virus, free speech is the vaccine May 22, 2025 Free speech, grounded in the principle of dispersed knowledge and “epistemic modesty” championed by Hayek, is far less dangerous than censorship, which empowers a self-appointed elite to enforce their biases on others, says Paul Marshall It is always dangerous to make binary distinctions, as they are over simplistic – but in the debate over free [...]
‘Banter ban’ debate rages in House of Lords May 20, 2025 A House of Lords debate on the details of the Employment Rights Bill sparked a row over ‘cancel culture’ on Monday after members took sides on a clause dubbed the “banter ban.” The debate hinged on the definition of “third party harassment” and on whether employers should face a legal duty to protect staff from [...]
Should employers brace for the arrival of Banter Police? April 16, 2025 On his first day in office following Labour’s election victory last summer, Keir Starmer promised to provide the country with “a politics that treads a little lighter on all of our lives.” In hindsight, this seductive proposition could mean different things to different people. At the time, I optimistically took it as a promise to [...]
Allison Pearson: The bar for criminality is rightly higher than ignorant tweets November 20, 2024 Like her or loathe her, the Allison Pearson row shows why we all have a stake in defending free speech, writes Silkie Carlo.
Let’s be honest, Elon Musk is right to defend free speech August 15, 2024 Blaming communications for unrest has a long and unhappy history. We repeat it at our peril, writes Matthew Lesh