This week Connie and Jan discuss the Public Spaces Protection Order that has been passed by Thanet District Council (TDC). In the summer of 2024, the FSU threatened legal action when TDC proposed a similar measure. This is their second attempt, and there are still serious concerns that it will infringe on speech rights and is likely to be unlawful – the swearing ban!
Jon Farley was arrested under the Terrorism Act for holding a satirical image made and published by Private Eye magazine about the proscription of Palestine Action. He was held for 6 hours and was eventually told no further action would be taken. The FSU has offered to look into helping the protestor with securing an apology from Leeds police.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jul/23/private-eye-cartoon-arrest-ian-hislop-protest
Lord Toby Young has called for Akeela Ahmed to step down from the government’s Islamophobia Working Group due to a conflict of interest. Ms Ahmed is the incoming Chief Executive of the British Muslim Trust which aims to monitor incidents of Islamophobia and “raise awareness” of hate crime with the help of £1 million a year donation from the government, we argue that her position calls into question the ability of the working group to objectively assess the merits of an official definition of Islamophobia.
Finally, some good news. Lord Chris Smith, a supporter of free speech and academic freedom, has been elected to the Chancellorship of Cambridge University! You can read his responses to a survey sent to all candidates in the election by Alumni for Free Speech here.
