UK (Parliament Politics Magazine) – Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch criticises Labour’s blasphemy law support, warning it could harm free speech, especially with recent Islamophobia proposals.
Tory leader has raised concerns that Labour’s backing of blasphemy laws threatens free speech in Britain, calling attention to the party’s shifting stance.
Kemi Badenoch views on Labour’s support for blasphemy laws
As reported by The Telegraph, Ms Badenoch criticised what she called an “authoritarian” streak in the ruling party, claiming it endangered freedom of speech.
She said,
“I don’t think Labour understands the importance of free speech, how it is a core British value. When you look at some of the rhetoric that we hear from Labour MPs, a lot of authoritarian stuff. We have Labour MPs talking about blasphemy laws.”
Ms Badenoch stated,
“That’s not free speech. They haven’t brought it in yet, but we need to be very vigilant that we do not allow the erosion of core principles like freedom of speech in the UK.”
She rejected US Vice President JD Vance’s claim that free speech is “disappearing” in the UK, but warned it remains “under threat.”
What did Angela Rayner propose regarding Islamophobia and blasphemy laws?
Angela Rayner, the Deputy Prime Minister, plans to introduce a new Islamophobia definition, but critics warn it could effectively act as a blasphemy law. She is leading efforts to define Islamophobia to tackle anti-Muslim hate.
She has formed a five-person working group, headed by Dominic Grieve, the former Tory attorney general, to create “appropriate and sensitive language.”
During its time in opposition, Labour indicated it would adopt a controversial 2018 Islamophobia definition drafted by an all-party parliamentary group.
What did critics say about Labour’s Islamophobia definition?
Opponents warned that the definition’s broad interpretation might turn it into a de facto blasphemy law, limiting criticism of Islam as a religion.
In November, Tahir Ali, a Labour MP, urged Sir Keir to “prohibit the desecration of all religious texts and the prophets of the Abrahamic religions.”
During Prime Minister’s Questions, the Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, did not reject the request, instead stating, “Desecration is awful and should be condemned.”
Following the exchange, critics accused Labour of attempting to bring in blasphemy laws, a move ministers later denied.
What did Kemi Badenoch say about gender ideology and Tory missteps?
Tory leaders acknowledged that the party had failed to address the rise of extreme activists by ignoring concerns over gender ideology.
Responding to the Supreme Court’s verdict, she admitted the Conservative Party had initially downplayed women’s concerns, referring to them as a “niche issue.”
Ms Badenoch said,
“One of the lessons that my party has now learnt is that sometimes just because everybody agrees on something doesn’t mean it’s right, and that sometimes you have to pay attention to things that don’t look like big issues.”
She stated,
“This stuff was allowed to seed for a very long time because many people thought, ‘well, you know, we don’t talk about this. We talk about the economy. Just ignore it – this is a niche issue’. And also believing that this was how you showed support for people who were LGBT.”
Ms Badenoch argued that such a strategy made the Tory party lose sight of its founding principles, especially protecting fundamental liberties.
She added,
“By not looking at the principles and just going along with what many people have been saying, initially we ended up just allowing extreme activists to take root.”
Anti-Muslim abuse cases in UK
According to Tell MAMA’s 2015 findings, incidents of anti-Muslim abuse across UK public spaces surged by 326%, with women largely targeted by teenage attackers.
The data shows that more than one in 10 attacks reported to Tell MAMA took place in educational settings, with public transport in urban areas also identified as a hotspot.
Shahid Malik, head of Tell MAMA, stated,
“The statistics paint a profoundly bleak picture of the explosion of anti-Muslim hate both online and on our streets, with visible Muslim women being disproportionately targeted by cowardly hatemongers.”
He added,
“This exponential growth is a testament to the fact that despite great efforts to fight anti-Muslim hatred, as a society we are still failing far too many of our citizens. With the backdrop of the Brexit vote and the spike in racist incidents that seems to be emerging, the government should be under no illusions, things could quickly become unpleasant for Britain’s minorities.”