University students are to be banned from “no-platforming” speakers, in the first government intervention on campus free speech in 30 years.
Under his proposals, the Department for Education will set out new guidelines on free speech on UK campuses; the first government intervention on the issue since the free speech duty was imposed on universities as part of the Education Act in 1986, says the newspaper.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The new guidance will state that all speech must be welcome at universities, as long as it does not violate existing laws – for example, on encouraging terrorism. Any institution in breach of the rules may be “named, shamed or even fined” by the new Office for Students (OfS) regulator, which also has the power to deregister universities, the Daily Mail reports.
“A society in which people feel they have a legitimate right to stop someone expressing their views on campus simply because they are unfashionable or unpopular is rather chilling,” Gyimah is expected to say. “There is a risk that overzealous interpretation of a dizzying variety of rules is acting as a brake on legal free speech on campus.”
The Times cites a recent investigation by MPs which found that “campaigners against abortion, Christian groups and secularists were among those who felt that it was hard to get a hearing at universities”. Feminists who oppose transgender self-identification have been met with similar resistance.
Political figures have also been subject to censorship at universities. In February, pro-Brexit Conservative MP Jacob Rees-Mogg was caught in the middle of a fight on Bristol University campus when protesters disrupted a student event at which he was speaking.
The new proposals were criticised by Labour’s shadow universities minister, Gordon Marsden, who said that Gyimah was trying to “micromanage free speech issues”. Marsden added that any discussions about regulation should be conducted in the open, rather than at private meetings inside the Department for Education, The Guardian reports.
“This announcement is simply another piece of meaningless posturing from the Government, while it has nothing practical to offer students dealing with record levels of debt,” Marsden said.
The Department for Education said today’s summit involves a wide range of influential organisations, including the Charity Commission, Universities UK and the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
-
Why social media is obsessed with cortisolIn The Spotlight Wellness trend is the latest response to an increasingly maligned hormone
-
Peter Mandelson called Epstein his 'best pal' in birthday noteSpeed Read The UK's ambassador to Washington described the late convicted paedophile as an 'intelligent, sharp-witted man'
-
A Spinal Tap reunion, Thomas Pynchon by way of Paul Thomas Anderson and a harrowing Stephen King adaptation in September moviesthe week recommends This month's new releases include 'Spinal Tap II,' 'One Battle After Another' and 'The Long Walk'
-
Where will international students go if not the US?Talking Points China, Canada and the UK are ready to educate the world
-
Colleges are canceling affinity graduations amid DEI attacks but students are pressing onIn the Spotlight The commencement at Harvard University was in the news, but other colleges are also taking action
-
Can Trump ban overseas students from US universities?Today's Big Question President's decision to revoke Harvard's access to database for admitting international students 'drastically escalates' the dispute
-
America's academic brain drain has begunIN THE SPOTLIGHT As the Trump administration targets universities and teachers, educators are eying greener academic pastures elsewhere — and other nations are starting to take notice
-
Is academic freedom in peril?Today's Big Question Faculty punishments are on the rise
-
Anti-Israel protests impact a Jewish-rooted universityThe Explainer The president of Brandeis University resigned as a result of multiple factors, including his handling of recent protests
-
Why are so many colleges closing?Today's Big Question 'Enrollment cliffs' and higher tuition both play a role
-
USC under fire for canceling valedictorian speechSpeed Read Citing safety concerns, the university canceled a pro-Palestinian student's speech
