In a significant move to bolster free speech on university campuses, the UK’s higher education watchdog, the Office for Students (OfS), proposed on Thursday to publicly name and fine institutions, colleges, and students’ unions in England that fail to uphold freedom of speech.
The act, campaigned for by the Free Speech Union (FSU), strengthens legal protections for free speech and academic freedom at English universities. It introduces mechanisms, including the appointment of an OfS director, responsible for ensuring compliance and addressing grievances related to free speech.
FSU Welcomes ‘Big Step Forward’
Mr. Young told The Epoch Times: “The Free Speech Union welcomes this new complaints scheme. Hitherto, the only way a visiting speaker who is no-platformed by a university can seek redress is to judicially review the university in question, which is prohibitively expensive.“But once this new scheme is in place, they'll be able to complain to the Office for Students free of charge and if the complaint is upheld the university could be fined a significant sum. That’s a big step forward when it comes to defending free speech on campus.”
Under the new scheme, individuals can complain to the OfS about free speech violations, and if justified, institutions may face fines. The OfS plans to publish decisions on justified complaints, promoting transparency. Professor Arif Ahmed, director for freedom of speech and academic freedom at the OfS, affirmed the naming and shaming of institutions failing in their free speech duties.
The proposals, which are under consultation until March 10, 2024, include a complaints scheme that allows individuals to seek redress for losses suffered owing to insufficient protection of free speech. If justified, institutions may be required to make payments to complainants. Expected to be in force from Aug. 1, the scheme focuses on complaints arising after that date.
Mr. Ahmed highlighted the scheme’s role in providing robust protections for freedom of speech, allowing individuals without financial backing to raise concerns without resorting to legal action. He emphasised the importance of upholding the law, distinguishing protected speech from illegal activities like harassment or incitement.
‘Stronger Protections’
He said: “When these measures are introduced, we will have much stronger protections for freedom of speech.“They won’t need to have financial security or they won’t need to have strong financial backing or they won’t need to have any of the things that you might otherwise need in order to take something through court for instance.
“They can come to our complaints scheme, they can do it for free, if they’re eligible, and we will look at their complaint as soon as reasonably practicable.
“We would hope that that will function as a way to protect freedom of speech for everyone and for everyone’s views.”
Universities UK (UUK) also welcomed the move, underscoring the sector’s commitment to protecting and promoting freedom of speech and academic freedom.
A spokeswoman for UUK said: “Freedom of speech and academic freedom sit right at the heart of universities’ purpose and the sector takes its responsibility to protect and promote them extremely seriously.
“We welcome the opportunity to feed into the next stage of OfS’s development of its plans to regulate universities on freedom of speech and will carefully consider the proposals to ensure that they work for students, universities, and students’ unions.
“It is crucial that the Office for Students and the sector as a whole works together to ensure that everyone on campus feels able to share their lawful views and opinions without fear of censorship.”
As the consultation period unfolds, stakeholders, including universities, students, and unions have been invited to contribute, ensuring the development of a regulatory framework that safeguards the essence of free expression on university campuses.
