Be afraid, be very afraid. Free speech is under severe attack in the UK from the woke/snowflake brigade and the Law Commission. Recent polls show that fearing reprisal, huge numbers of people now moderate what they say.

The adage ‘I disagree with what you say, but I will defend your right to say it,’ has been been replaced with ‘give me half a dozen words written or spoken by any person and I will find something that can be used against them’. What we are witnessing is a direct threat to the rights of ordinary people.

Over the past few years there has been numerous reports of people losing their jobs for expressing their opinions or even making a joke. And when high-profile people have careers put at risk after being attacked for making what to the rest of us are common sense comments, it sends a signal to everyone else to toe the line.

What is of greater concern is the speed and brutality which some of the world’s biggest companies respond to complaints from the woke/snowflake brigade.

Recently the media carried news about a long standing CEO being forced to resign because some members of the work force had complained that he had said that the pandemic should not be used as an excuse to stay away from work. Did the company support him? No they did not.

For reasons which defy all understanding, this small but extremely vociferous group exert such power that in less than 48 hours he was gone.

The Law Commission has proposed removing the “dwelling exemption” from legislation covering “stirring up” offences in a move that its experts argue would clarify the law. Until 1986, the offence of using words or behaviour intended or likely to incite racial hatred could only be committed in a public place. Critics have claimed the proposed reform would criminalise dinner-table conversations in which casual comments were made about other nationalities or groups.

Can you imagine how stilted conversations would be if you thought that someone would report what had been said?

Because of criticism, the Law Commission backed down, but don’t think it is the end of the matter. Give them a few months and the proposal will be back, albeit with different wording.

FREE THINKER