Higher education minister says institutions that fail to protect freedom of speech could be fined

Universities could face fines for failing to uphold free speech if their student unions do not give a platform to speakers such as Germaine Greer and Peter Tatchell, the higher education minister has said.

Jo Johnson said some student campaigners were trying to stifle debate as he confirmed plans to allow the newly created Office for Students (OfS) to fine or suspend institutions that fail to protect freedom of speech on campuses.

The government’s Boxing Day announcement does not name universities or student campaigners that have suppressed free speech and follows a similar one in October.



But speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Johnson suggested fines could be one of the punishments used to deal with “no platforming” of campaigners with controversial views.

Asked about cases where students had tried to deny speaking slots to Tatchell, a gay rights campaigner, and Greer, a feminist writer, over their views on transgender issues, he said: “The Office for Students will have a range of remedies at its disposal which do include fines at the more extreme end of the spectrum. I think it is important that we look at the cases mentioned.

“These are speakers who have been potentially banned or harried under no-platforming or safe spaces decisions. On all reasonable definitions, they are advocates of openness and liberal values and should be welcomed on our campuses.”

He claimed that at some universities students had insisted on extensive lists of “trigger words” that should not be used and had demanded the removal of books from their libraries.

Ministers plan fines for universities which fail to uphold free speech Read more

Critics will say the announcement does not help universities define when individuals are actively engaged in hate speech and when they are merely expressing their opinion.

However, Johnson said the law on hate speech was clearly set out by parliament and argued that students who felt uncomfortable with views that did not come within that definition had to become “resilient and learn to deal with controversial opinions”.

Student unions and campaigners have banned – or attempted to ban – a number of high-profile people from speaking at universities because of their controversial opinions.



Rachael Melhuish, the women’s officer at Cardiff University, called for Greer to be no-platformed for what she believed to be transphobic views. Greer eventually spoke at the university under tight security.



Johnson will speak about no-platform policies at the Limmud festival in Birmingham, which is a series of events celebrating Jewish culture. He will say: “Universities should be places that open minds not close them, where ideas can be freely challenged. In universities in America and worryingly in the UK, we have seen examples of groups seeking to stifle those who do not agree with them.



“We must not allow this to happen. Young people should have the resilience and confidence to challenge controversial opinions and take part in open, frank and rigorous discussions. That is why the new regulator, the Office for Students, will go even further to ensure that universities promote freedom of speech within the law.”



As a condition of registration to the OfS, the Department for Education is proposing that publicly funded universities must show that their governance is consistent with the principles of free speech. The department does not at this stage outline how they would measure the governance or how they should comply with free speech.

The OfS is expected to be given regulatory powers to issue formal sanctions against universities, such as fines or deregistration.



Nick Lowles, director of Hope Not Hate, and Johnson’s brother Boris, the foreign secretary, have faced being barred from speaking. The feminist activist, journalist and writer Julie Bindel has been no-platformed by the National Union of Students (NUS) for several years for her views.

Johnson will also signal backing for universities that continue to ban far-right groups that advocate forms of discrimination such as racism and antisemitism. “A racist or antisemitic environment is by definition an illiberal one that is completely in opposition to the liberal tradition of our universities,” he will say.

Earlier in the year the government extended the statutory duty to secure free speech so that it will apply to all providers of higher education registered with the OfS.

The NUS’s no-platform policy was launched in 1974 and bans six organisations from speaking at its events. They are al-Muhajiroun, the British National party, the English Defence League, Hizb ut-Tahrir, the Muslim Public Affairs Committee and National Action. However, many student unions have their own no-platform policies

A survey last year found that most university students (63%) are in favour of the NUS having a no-platforming policy. Analysis by Spiked magazine, supported by the Joseph Rowntree Reform Trust, found that more than nine in 10 UK universities were restrictive of free speech.



Universities and other higher education providers are required by the Education (No 2) Act 1986 to take reasonable steps to secure freedom of speech within the law for staff, students and visiting speakers.

