Freedom Of Expression On Campus Must Be Protected | Scoop News – Scoop.co.nz

Friday, 14 May 2021, 11:25 amPress Release: ACT New Zealand

ABill introduced to the UK Parliament this week sharesthe same goal as my Members Bill and should be debatedhere in New Zealand, says ACT MP Dr JamesMcDowall.

Free speech on campus iscritical. Fostering the ability of students to discuss anddebate ideas is an essential part of higherlearning.

My Bill, The Education (Freedom ofExpression) Amendment Bill will ensure tertiary educationinstitutions like universities are funded by taxpayers forthe purpose of freely and openly discussingideas.

Speakers shouldnt be de-platformed bypeople who dont agree with them.

Tertiaryeducation institutions are required by the Education Act1989 and the Bill of Rights Act 1990 to uphold academicfreedom and freedom of expression, but it is currently not acondition of funding that institutions adhere to theserequirements.

Essentially, there are noconsequences if an institution actively inhibits freedom ofexpression without legitimate cause.

Its greatto see the UK moving in the right direction with thislegislation which has thesame goal as my MembersBill.

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If there really is anyone out there who feels genuinely panicked about what cancel culture' is doing to our precious freedoms, then maybe they should just take a deep breath, look hard at who has allegedly been cancelled and see if they can detect any trace of a lasting cancellation effect. Chances are, the alleged cancellees will be doing just fine. By and large, they will be people who do not lack for a public platform never have, never will and the downstream effects of being cancelled will almost invariably be trending towards zero... More>>

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