It’s been a hectic week in British politics after a Labour government was elected in a landslide last week. There are reported to be 30 new bills which will be announced in the King’s speech as part of the state opening of parliament next Tuesday.
As our CEO Jemimah Steinfeld indicated in last week’s newsletter, we at Index are keeping a beady eye on how much new Prime Minister Keir Starmer and his government will prioritise freedom of expression at home and abroad. To help guide his thinking, we have put together this manifesto, a wishlist for freedom of expression under the new government.
So far the signs are encouraging. As one of his first acts in office, the new foreign secretary David Lammy called for the immediate release of Russian-British journalist Vladimir Kara-Murza whose plight Index highlighted in April this year. Kara-Murza is languishing in a Russian penal colony in Omsk and there were fears this week for his health after it was reported that he had been moved to the prison’s hospital.
Lammy said in his statement : “His [Kara-Murza’s] absurd 25-year sentence shows the Kremlin’s deep fear that more Russians will know the reality of Putin’s illegal war – and is further evidence of the targeted repression of the opposition.” He also called for his lawyer to have permission to visit him, which subsequently happened.
In other encouraging news for free speech in the UK, human rights lawyer Richard Hermer KC was appointed attorney general. A former colleague of Starmer’s, he will serve in government from the House of Lords. He has a distinguished career fearlessly standing up for human rights highlighted today in a Guardian profile. He recently gave legal advice that the so-called BDS bill proposed by the Conservative government, would stifle free speech. The bill (which never became law) was introduced by the then communities secretary Michael Gove to stop local councils and other public bodies economically boycotting countries like Israel. The new solicitor general, freshly elected MP Sarah Sackman, also worked with Hermer at Matrix Chambers.
Meanwhile Index – as co-chairs of the Anti-SLAPP coalition – has written a letter to the Prime Minister to ask for a bill to be introduced next Tuesday, putting protections in place which prevent Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs). Legislation had been introduced as a private members bill in the last parliament. It garnered cross-party support, but never became law. The letter, signed by Index’s Jessica Ní Mhainín and Nik Williams, calls for that bill to be revived and strengthened. As we highlight, these kind of lawsuits not only hinder clampdowns on fraud and corruption, but silence many ordinary people including “sexual violence survivors speaking out after the police or the CPS have refused to bring criminal charges, patients of healthcare services posting reviews to highlight concerns regarding their care, as well as members of the public scrutinising a wide variety of services they have received.” If the Labour government were to introduce a comprehensive Anti-SLAPP law early in their administration, it would be a brave and tangible indication of their commitment to free expression. In the meantime we are holding an event in Dublin on SLAPPs in October and you can sign up for tickets here.
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