‘It’s a free country isn’t it guv’nor’ is an expression that used to be a way for Britons to gently dismiss or mock any po-faced individuals whose sense of personal offence was so great that they thought they had the right to impinge on the rights of others. It encapsulated the attitude among Britons that in peacetime people had the right express opinions even if they were completely mental and, short of inciting murder or high treason, the State could do nothing about that opinion. This ability to speak ones mind not only benefited Britons but also benefited those who fled from ideologies like Communism or Fascism where voicing an opinion contrary to that approved by the government could lead to a permanent trip to the gulag or the concentration camp. We all benefited from freedom of speech even if hearing that speech made us feel uncomfortable.
However, this happy and free state of affairs began to change with the introduction of various ‘hate speech’ laws by both the Labour and Conservative parties. These laws have progressively chipped away at the historic rights of freedom of speech in the UK, rights that had had to be hard fought for over many generations.
It’s time to bring free speech back to the UK but the only way this can be done is by repealing the intrusive and censorious ‘hate speech’ laws that shackle Britons and forbid them from uttering opinions that members of some minority groups may find ‘offensive’. As a member of a religious minority myself I understand how hurtful some comments can be, but ‘hate speech’ laws have turned out to be a cure that is worse than the disease. They have become shackles on the ability of Britons to debate important issues.
In order to debate vital issues in a spirit of freedom and to not have to look over ones shoulder every time we utter an opinion for fear of being arrested, Britain needs its free speech back. ‘Hate speech’ laws are not only unjust in that they create special classes of people who have more rights than others, in this case the right not to be ‘offended’, they are also infinitely corruptible especially now that no actual proof of harm is required in order to bring any ‘hate crime’ charge.
Therefore I urge the readers of this blog to sign the Free Speech Petition to Parliament which is linked to below. Let’s bring free speech home again. Let’s get rid of the increasingly hated ‘hate speech’ laws that make a mockery of claims that Britain is still a free country.
