Free speech ‘stifled’ as universities cancel record number of speakers – The Telegraph

Freedom of speech is at risk of being stifled on campuses after a record number of speakers and events were rejected last year, the universities watchdog has warned.

The Office for Students found that nearly 200 requests for events and speakers were rejected by English universities and colleges in 2020-21, up from 94 in the previous academic year.

Susan Lapworth, the watchdogs interim chief executive, said she was concerned about the possibility that lawful views are being stifled.

She warned universities that they would face regulatory intervention if they failed to meet their obligations on freedom of speech.

Topics that some may find offensive or controversial must be open to free debate on campuses and across research communities, she said.

The vice-chancellor of the University of Essex apologised last year after a seminar on trans rights and the criminal justice system was cancelled following complaints that the speaker was a transphobe who was likely to engage in hate speech.

The university was also criticised after Prof Rosa Freedman, an expert in international human rights law at the University of Reading, was not invited to speak at a seminar on anti-Semitism after concerns were raised about her gender-critical views.

Andrea Jenkyns, the higher education minister, said the watchdogs findings were very concerning.

She said: Universities and colleges must be places that champion debate and diversity of thought, and this government has warned of the chilling effect of censorship on our campuses.

Under proposals in the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill currently going through Parliament, universities will have a legal duty to actively promote free speech. University governing bodies are currently required to take reasonable steps to ensure that freedom of speech within the law is maintained.

The Office for Students, which has the power to fine or deregister education providers, said it could not confirm whether it has previously penalised any universities over their handling of freedom of speech because it would risk prejudicing ongoing enquiries.

The regulator found that 193 events were rejected out of a total of 19,407 reported to it last year, the highest number recorded since it started collecting data in 2017.

Toby Young, of the Free Speech Union, said: This is a deeply worrying trend, but its just the tip of the iceberg.

In the past 12 months, the Free Speech Union has helped hundreds of students and academics whove got into trouble for pushing back against ideological orthodoxy on campus, whether its refusing to do unconscious bias training, criticising their universitys links with Stonewall, objecting to the decolonisation of the curriculum, or daring to point out that George Floyd had a criminal record.

Undergraduates are significantly less supportive of free expression than they were six years ago, according to research by the Higher Education Policy Institute.

The think tank surveyed 1,000 undergraduates and found that 61 per cent say when in doubt, their own university should ensure all students are protected from discrimination rather than allow unlimited free speech up from 37 per cent in 2016.

A spokesman for Universities UK said: Institutions do all they can to ensure a culture which encourages free speech and academic freedom so diverse groups and individuals can participate in debate and discussion, with mutual dignity and respect.

Vice-chancellors support universities playing a more active and visible role in promoting free speech and encouraging debate, and these latest figures show that universities and student unions continue to host tens of thousands of events each year, with less than one per cent not going ahead, often for logistical reasons such as late booking requests.

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Free speech 'stifled' as universities cancel record number of speakers - The Telegraph