Schools that favour ‘woke over free speech’ warned they could face fines under same crackdown planned for ‘right-on’ universities in England
- Tory MPs are to tell Ministers that schools should face the same regime of fines
- Some ‘right-on’ universities are seeking to ‘cancel’ people’s right to be heard
- Trent College reported chaplain to Prevent after he questioned its LGBT policies
- Chairman of Common Sense Group labelled it a ‘gross disregard’ of free speech
Schools that favour ‘woke over free speech’ have been warned they could face the same crackdown being planned for universities in England.
Tory MPs are to tell Ministers that schools should face the same regime of fines and sanctions if they follow the example of ‘right-on’ universities by seeking to ‘cancel’ people’s right to be heard.
The demand from the party’s Common Sense Group comes after The Mail on Sunday revealed how independent school Trent College had reported its chaplain to the anti-terrorism Prevent programme after he questioned its LGBT policies.
Sir John Hayes, chairman of the Common Sense Group, last night labelled the Trent College episode a ‘gross disregard’ of free speech.
The Mail on Sunday revealed how independent school Trent College (pictured) reported its chaplain to the anti-terrorism Prevent programme after he questioned its LGBT policies
He called for schools behaving in such a manner to face the same anti-free speech sanctions that are proposed for universities, and which will be debated by MPs later this month.
‘The Government is already rightly committed to protecting freedom of speech and open debate from the fanatics of woke and intolerance,’ Sir John said.
‘If we find more abuses of the kind exposed by The Mail on Sunday at Trent College, Ministers may have to include schools in the new regime as well.’
A plan to protect free speech in universities and to curb the so-called ‘cancel culture’ in academia was one of the flagship measures unveiled by Boris Johnson in the Queen’s Speech programme of legislation in May. The new system would be overseen by a new Director for Freedom of Speech and Academic Freedom.
In a forthcoming meeting with Schools Standards Minister Nick Gibb, the Common Sense Group of more than 60 Tory MPs and peers will raise concerns about similar abuses in schools, citing the case of the Reverend Dr Bernard Randall (pictured)
In a forthcoming meeting with Schools Standards Minister Nick Gibb, the Common Sense Group of more than 60 Tory MPs and peers will raise concerns about similar abuses in schools, citing the case of the Reverend Dr Bernard Randall.
He was secretly referred to Prevent by Trent College after he delivered a sermon defending the right of pupils to question its introduction of new LGBT policies. He told pupils they were allowed to disagree with the measures.
The school, having decided that the sermon was ‘harmful to LGBT’ students, referred him to the anti-terrorism programme.
Dr Randall was later dismissed and he has taken the school to an employment tribunal over claims of discrimination, harassment, victimisation and unfair dismissal.
The case has been adjourned until September next year. Trent College last night said it remained ‘committed to defending the case’ but declined to comment further.