The Higher Education Policy Institute has just published a survey of British students’ attitudes to free speech. It’s basically a repeat of the survey they published back in 2016, which allows us to look at trends over time. Unfortunately, as Toby has already noted, they’re not pretty: students have become less supportive of free speech over the last six years.
One example is shown in the chart below. Respondents were asked which of two overall policies their university should favour.
Back in 2016, 27% said “Ensuring unlimited free speech” versus 37% who said “Ensure that all students are protected” – a 10-point gap. Yet by 2020, the percentages were 17% and 61% – a 44-point gap!
What’s more, students are in collective denial about the diminishing status of free speech on campus. In this year’s survey, only 38% agreed that “universities are becoming less tolerant of a wide range of viewpoints”. The rest were either unsure or said they disagreed. Unsurprisingly, women were substantially less likely to agree.
Interestingly, if we compare attitudes in Britain to those in America, there’s less evidence that things are getting worse. Since 2016, the Knight Foundation has carried out four surveys of American students’ attitudes to free speech, asking the same kinds of questions as the Higher Education Policy Institute.
The chart below shows results for a question in the Knight Foundation’s survey that’s almost identical to the one above.
The first thing to notice is that the majority of respondents said “Allowing students to be exposed to all types of speech” is more important than “Protecting students”. This doesn’t mean American students are more pro-free speech than British ones: once you get into specifics, levels of support for censorship are similar.
What’s also worth noticing is there hasn’t been a rise in the fraction of respondents saying “Protecting students” is more important than “Allowing students to be exposed to all types of speech”. (Although note that 17 percentage points of those who held the opposite view moved into the “No opinion” category.)
Another question that both surveys asked was about ‘safe spaces’. As shown below, the British survey found a noticeable increase in support for those policies – from 48% in 2016 to 62% in 2022.
However, the American survey found a noticeable decrease in support – from 87% in 2017 to ‘only’ 60% in 2021. This is shown in the image below. (The other two charts in the image show there’s no obvious trend in support for speech codes or speaker disinvitations either.)
Why the different trends in the two countries? One possibility is that American campuses reached a peak of opposition to free speech earlier than British ones, and the latter are now playing catch up. Which would make sense, given that American campuses are probably the global epicentre of woke ideology.
In any case, neither the British nor American surveys make for encouraging reading. A large fraction of students simply don’t endorse the kind of values that make truth-seeking possible. And that’s not going to change overnight.
Stop Press: Professor Doug Stokes told Darren Grimes on GB News why falling support for free speech among British students is something we should be concerned about.
‘If students are protected by ideas which might hurt their feelings they’re not going to grow as adults.’
— GB News (@GBNEWS) June 25, 2022
Professor Doug Stokes, University of Exeter, reacts to university students wanting less free speech.GB News on YouTube https://t.co/KHMl3BAwQ2 pic.twitter.com/GuAvMBe3Wk
To join in with the discussion please make a donation to The Daily Sceptic.
Profanity and abuse will be removed and may lead to a permanent ban.
Noah have you only just worked out that they are cunts
I am sure he has known this for months, but it might be tricky to use that wording as the title of his article, amusing as it would be.
Why? It’s the absolute truth, and dissembling weakens you.
It’s a word that fits them all perfectly.
This is evil
We were in LONDON for the anti Lockdown demo
Join every anti Lockdown even you can
Stand in the park South Hill Park Bracknell every Sunday 10am meet fellow lockdown sceptics
Join our Telegram Group: t.me/astandintheparkbracknell
They do make stuff up but in this case it makes perfect sense as part of the bread and circuses strategy they have pursued from the start
The lack of opposition is a big part of it but fundamentally it is enabled by propaganda and psychological warfare funded by the taxpayer
And funded and supported happily by the taxpayer too.
Manufactured consent. Which is why our constitution, ought to forbid governments from engaging in “nudging” of any kind.
not in my case – why should they use my taxes to pay for that which I am VERY opposed to at the same time as telling me that those same taxes cannot be used to fund the medical treatment which I need and they won’t provide so I have to pay for it myself while watching ALL kinds of charlatans benefit and profit while lying to the country and ramping up the fear???
Oh I’m with you. The only positive about losing income this year is that the fuckers won’t get their usual vast amounts of tax out of me.
Unfortunately the vast majority seem to want this crap to continue forever.
There’s no opposition because in reality it’s all one political party with the same aims and policies.
Bingo. Just different rosettes on the same Party of Davos.
“How can the government get away with it?”. Because they have been pretty successful so far.
Yep. Put simply.
Why should they stop or reverse course, when the plebs have rewarded them for it at the ballot box?!
To get Randian, the question is not who will allow them, it is who will stop them.
Hey, there is another option, dear Sceptics:
Leave The Country.
An exodus of intelligent, free-minded, sceptical, imaginative people who can think critically and perform basic research and arithmetic to see this has NEVER been a health emergency…
Question is: where to go to start the new New World?
Iceland?
Wife says it’s too cold. I do however tell her that it’s a volcanic island, with hot springs ever, and they really know how to build warm houses.
Plus they are ultra piss heads.
I know they are lifting some restrictions now but have they had a “never again” moment? Unless they have, you’re a hostage to fortune.
Restrictions will be back in September. I thought we all knew that.
Weren’t they amongst the first to require 2 jabs for entry to the country?
As far as I can see the only places where the madness never took much hold or has now been rejected are mainly US States governed by Republicans (not puffing up Republicans here, just making an observation). E.g. Florida, South Dakota, Texas. And then you have poor countries who cannot afford lockdowns. Other places may have had fewer restrictions at one time or another, e.g. Sweden, but have still bought into the narrative. The fundamental truth that covid was not an emergency and that even if it had been, govt power should never extend to lockdowns etc. has not been recognised in many places in the mainstream/by the majority.
Totally agree with everything you write, Julian. A simple summary of the last, horrible sixteen months.
Family in Morocco say it’s completely back to (Moroccan) normal. Not officially, but practically.
Family in Turkey are still suffering under thoroughly ridiculous restrictions which are enforced.
Family in Czech Rep say nobody wears masks outside, but that you are literally prevented from entering any buildings if you’re not wearing the muzzle.
Family in Poland say similar to those in Czech Rep but they have not restricted any activities, unlike Czech Rep.
Family in Virginia say mask mandates are heavy, but basically OK.
Family in Florida – are sitting pretty.
Nothing remotely OK about mask mandates.
Bloody hell you lot get about.
“US States governed by Republicans”
My guess is that, had the realpolitik been different, the result would likely have been the same.
I think there is more libertarian thinking in the US than most other places. Not that the Republicans are particularly libertarian, but possibly more of their voters are.
I’m resigned to this. I hate what this country has become in 16 months or so. OK the writing has been on the wall for a number of years, but the naivety and ignorance of the general public, the greed of our political class, the inherent evil in our public health officials and civil service and the rottenness of our mainstream media has come to the fore in this period. This is a poxy, small-minded, grotty little rat-hole of a country. I’m off!
We are off, too, mka. Just got a few big things to close out and then into our van with the kids, scouring Europe, Asia and Africa for a new home. USA seems too far off, as much as I think we’d love FL, SD and TX. Unless they open a COVID REFUGEE PROGRAM, that is!
USA very hard to get into, legally, unless you have skills in a shortage occupation or millions to invest in a business
… and no great example in a wider context, despite some advantages in terms of devolved power.
I would not have considered it, until covid. I mean there are many worse places to be, but I would have looked at Europe and other Anglosphere countries first had I needed to move.
I admit I’m stuck on this question (I’m limiting this to places I know to some extent) – all the places I’ve been attracted to, like Spain and Czechia have been compromised, and I’ve always said that two countries where I would never wish to live are the US and Israel.
At one time, I might have said ‘NZ’!
I would have considered anywhere in the Alps, probably more the Teutonic side, Austria, Switzerland, Germany, Trentino Alto Adige. And winters in the Canary Islands. I think they are all probably off the list now.
At one time, I might have said ‘NZ’!
Try going there now, or even applying for residence, unless you have millions to burn. The other thing to worry about is the lovely Jacinda, an armpit with teeth. Yuk.
Agreed, Julian, that’s what I mean when I say it’s “too far off”. I think I could potentially swing the “skills” scale in my favour, but the chances of bureaucratic ridiculousness makes me think it ain’t worth the hassle.
I envy you – good luck!
In some ways this has always been the case. The image of historical Great Britain has always been a con in great part – the recent TV play about Mountbatten in India brought to mind one massive ineptitude that blows apart the notion of competence and benevolence – as does the present state of Palestine.
The notion of a ‘parliamentary democracy’ that is actually a monarchy (German) was always full of holes. Corruption and hypocrisy (admittedly no different from other places – but that’s the point) is endemic and salted with the privileges of class, with the resultant breathtaking general managerial (in all senses) incompetence.
But there were always balancing factors, and a feeling of ‘despite all that shit …’., and the physical aspects of these islands are manifest (that stays).
But the balance has now been fundamentally twisted out of shape.
Exactly. As my wife (Polish) puts it – I am now ready to be disappointed by another country – one where at least the weather is good.
The Truly Free American States of Florida&Texas&SDco would be my first choice, if they ever can make that construct happen.
But I’d even chose Florida now whilst it was still part of that collapsing construct USA, banking on DeSantis or Noem as next POTUS for at least 8 years, if they only let me in.
Alternatively, I’d be joining any group of libertarians in any place of the world if they were given a territory. We c/would even turn the West Sahara into a paradise within a decade.
Libertarians in the US – when they didn’t vote to be led by John McAfee (who now sadly sits in a Spanish prison, in Barcelona, I think) I gave up on that party!
EDIT – John McAfee died three days ago…
McAfee killed himself in prison a few days ago, when his extradition to US was authorised
Just after he twattered if I do an Epstein it wasn’t me I was suicided.
Western Sahara – gets my vote. Big van life community already winters there…
Kekistan.
Perhaps they have gone already.
Well, headlines like this one don’t help as it makes it look as if this is the first sign that they are making it up as they go. EVERYTHING they have done shows they’re making it up as they go.
I think that the next remote island which “comes up for sale” – from time to time they do – we should club together and buy it. Frame our own constitution – agree our own rules – that will be the only way to A) get out of this madness and B) make sure it never happens again and C) get to do some living.
I am in. The first crowdfunding ever that would make sense.
Yep, in!
Mars?
Yes Labour and the ‘LibDems’ have been a total disgrace throughout this shit show. When you go so far down a rabbit hole in your desperation to support the government narrative, it’s very difficult to get yourself out of it. Credit in some ways to Caroline Lucas for calling it out but the Greens have been a total disgrace too, faffing about worrying about trans people and claiming anyone who feels like it is a woman, cock or not, whilst supporting the rise of global corporations and billionaires at the expense of the poor they are meant to care about. The whole political class are frankly a bunch of absolute cunts.
Compare this lot to the politicians of the 50s and 60s who had some morals and resigned when their behaviour slipped from societal norms.
Profumo looks like a boy scout in comparison
“desperation to support the government narrative”
I don’t think that’s the motivation. It’s the fear of standing up against it. Midget politics. So Starmer has gone the other way – more and harder.
Yes that may be a better way of putting it.
It makes perfect sense when you understand that there are no ‘real’ politicians anymore. The political class are now just managers. They ‘manage’ democracy and politics on behalf of the same globalist puppet masters. And they’re all the same all over the Western developed nations – plastic Macrons, Trudeaus, Ardens, Blairs – grinning charmless mannequins employed to give speeches littered with woke management speak and globalist nonsense, there to maintain the illusion of democratic choice in the rotting remnants of Western civilization.
Except NONE of them have ANY management skills or abilities.
Ffs they have been making it up as they go along for some time now. What is that quote? ‘Men lose their minds in herds but regain their senses one by one’. It is slow going for the herd I must admit.
Yes – Charles Mackay in “Extraordinary Public Delusions and The Madness of Crowds”. One of my favourite quotes.
They can get away with making things up as they go along because it’s currently blamed on a third party, aka the ‘variants’; the latest being the Lambda variant from I can’t remember where. Keep ’em coming cos the kids are waking up and the more ridiculous the more even adults wake up.
I think they should call it eh Lambada variant [ as its from S America]
The propaganda continues from the NHS. Yesterday my wife and I both received letters telling us that we were at high risk of serious illness if we caught COVID-19. I have cancer, my wife has no underlying illnesses; she is also 10 years younger than me. Both letters had exactly the same wording, in a font size that you could read from the other side of the room.
If we were so disposed we would be rushing off to get our missed vaccination – as it is I have no intention of taking a drug that is not a vaccine and has not yet completed its trial phase.
I had the same yesterday. Also the harassment texts have started up again, having stopped when I told them I was declining to be part of the experiment. At least we know how desperate they are.
It reminds me of the scare-tactics and harassment used by the BBC when they bombard you with TV licence junk mail. I’d already told my GP to stop the phone calls, so instead they started sending regular text messages. I then ‘opted out’ of the messages but they started coming from a different source of NHS instead, so I blocked that number.
Now they’ve started sending letters.
This must be expensive. This is surely costing the tax payer a hell of lot of money because even the envelope was printed in colour. Then I learn the NHS will be giving out £400 vouchers to deter pregnant women from smoking – they’re deliberately trying to crash the economy.
The £400 vouchers are probably as a result of WHO latest outburst – pregnant women or women of childbearing age should abstain from alcohol. Teetotal till menopause, then?
I’m in roughly the same position – but haven’t had such egregious postal assaults. Yet.
Me and my fiancée also got the letters, loaded with sensational claims that I could get seriously ill without the jab.
I’m wording a complaint to them and I’ll be sending one to my GP as well.
“ In the vote to extend lockdown, almost every Labour and “Liberal” Democrat MP voted again with the Government. And it’s hard to hold a party to account when there aren’t any other options.”
Fuck ‘em, fuck ‘em all.
” … it’s hard to hold a party to account when there aren’t any other options”
This is fundamental. By definition, democracy depends upon different forces having a voice. Without that, there is no democracy,and the best you get is majoritarianism – easily manipulated populist diktat.
Of course, looked at rationally, the policies have always been in tatters, but this moves it all to another level of egregiousness, and another notch on the thermostat of frog boiling.
As I said in the other thread, the G7 BBQ, Hancock and now UEFA, above all uber-draconian Merkel flying in for a day trip on Tuesday, demonstrates that they are now at the stage where they are just openly taking the p*ss out of us plebs.
And we let them do so and as such continue to deserve it and what’s still upcoming.
yes – hasn’t she hear of Zoom??? I mean the rest of us have had no choice but to use it – why can’t she???
The Germans have finally found a means by which they can claim all of the sun beds without having to get up at the crack of dawn.
“How can the Government can get away with simply making things up as they go along? ”
That’s how populist government’s roll. They know this is now silly, but they have to maintain the pretense – because opinion polls. Politicians are followers, not leaders.
However the news is good and the politicians might finally be trying to get out of ‘typecast’ roles they have been given.
By keeping Hancock it means that what Hancock says in cabinet can be ignored
They knew it was silly to begin with, and they formed public opinion rather than following it, or certainly pushed it VERY hard in a specific direction (increase fear, the opposite of what you are meant to do in an emergency). Why?
I think it possible that the behavioural psychologists in SAGE never imagined how “successful” their policies would be.
Ferguson said they didn’t think they could get away with what the CCP did in Wuhan until they saw Italy and realised they could.
The govt had no business approving the fear campaign. IMO it is their biggest sin, bigger than the lockdowns.
“The govt had no business approving the fear campaign. IMO it is their biggest sin, bigger than the lockdowns.”
Yes. Unforgivable.
Civil disobedience is the way forward. Say no to masks. Say no to testing. Crack on and ignore social distancing. The Matt Handcock moment clinched (no pun intended) it for me. Time to give this “Do as l say and not what l do” government notice.
We’re trying that but it’s hard. People are pushed into corners in their personal situations by employers and other bodies. Ideally we need some big businesses to open up regardless, and rich backers who are happy to fund legal expenses and support for those whose livelihoods are affected if they get fined/shut down.
In future when challenged for not wearing a mask instead of “I’m exempt” I will be saying “I have the Hancock exemption”.
Or ‘I identify as Hancock’.
On second thoughts, no, that’s grotesque!
Making it up as they go along. BS galore.
Rid the country of Blairites that would be a start
Starting with the lead Bliar.
To disprove a hypothesis it only takes 1 negative result. How many negative results have there been surrounding this hysteria that the sheeple believe because of “the science”.
There are many cases demonstrating that lockdowns, masks, antisocial distancing and so called vaccines don’t work, but the sheep still believe “the science”.
I look at it this way – if this was really a deadly and highly contagious pandemic would there be any exemptions at all? I mean seriously – if people of all ages – both young and old, healthy and unhealthy – were all actually dropping dead in the streets everywhere you go do you really think that the government would be allowing exemptions of any kind. In the event of a serious deadly pandemic – something on par with say the Black Death – I don’t think there would be any exemptions – none at all – in fact last year at the height of the pandemic and without the vaccines international travel was still happening in and out of the UK from all corners of the globe flying into all our airports which were as busy as usual with tourists coming in and out of the country 24/7 – we have vaccines this year and now the government has imposed rules and restrictions on flights and destinations? None of this adds up and neither does the exemptions for UEFA officials when the rest of us have to submit to all kinds of quarantines and tests if we want to fly anywhere.
The whole thing stinks to high heaven – either this government is the most inept bunch of morons ever to step into 10 Downing Street or they are very clever and fucking with our minds for one reason or another – either way there is no justification for bending the rules for a officials in any capacity while imposing the severest restrictions on everyone else.
Reminds me of the old Soviert Union – a life of luxury and privileges for the ruling communsist elite – misery and bread queues for eveyone else.
Make Zil Lanes Great Again.
If it were that deadly a pandemic nobody would need to be ‘nudged’ to act in their own best interests.
Precisely!
“Reminds me of the old Soviert Union – a life of luxury and privileges for the ruling communsist elite – misery and bread queues for eveyone else.”
What with G7, UEFA VIPs and Hancock keeping his job I think we are already in that territory.
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/high-consequence-infectious-diseases-hcid
Downgrading the “High Consequences” was accompanied by massive ramping up of restrictions with the catastrophic consequences that are all to obvious; Hancock drove this with SAGE/NERVTAG working Whitty, Vallance, Harries, van Tam, and supported by Lib unDems, Greens and Labour. Trust in politicians wins the Oxymoron of the Year. Very few MP’s have had their reputations enhanced so the UK Great Political Reset has to happen; political parties are anachronistic imho – what now..?
This, the Hancock affair and G7 serve the purpose of beating down the plebs – the one rule for us thing is there to show us that no matter how much we whinge about it, nothing will be done. It’s all part of the plan to usher in the reset – so when it happens we know that it’ll be no use complaining because nothing ever happens. Violent revolution might make them think twice. Anybody fancy joining me?
I believe that violent responses are what they’re trying to goad us to do, then they’ll have the excuse to control us by force.
The freedom marches have all been carried out peacefully (not that you’d know from the msm minimal reporting of them). They are the way forward, together with completely ignoring their diktats on social distancing, hugging, wearing muzzles, rules of six and all the rest of the shite.
Yesterday I met two friends separately that I haven’t seen for a while because they both bought in fully to the nonsense of the past 16 months. Both of them, without hesitation stepped forward to hug me with a wry smile.
The tide is turning, albeit slowly. I hope the Hancock affair (pun intended) will not only help to rid us of this psychopath but may bring the government down.
The way forward is peaceful noncompliance which includes not getting tested.
Just been on the news that all over 50’s will be offered a Covid booster jab as well as a flu jab in the autumn. They’ll have arms that will have seen more pricks than Katie Price.
“Offered”.
Do any of the pretend journalists ask what the “booster” is for? What trials have there been to assess whether a booster might be required, what it should consist of, how effective it is, what the risks are, and how often it might be needed?
needed “as often as they say it is”
The “booster” is intended to boost the kill rate.
Obv.
Everything they have done since March 2020 shows they are making it up as they go along.
I’d be interested to know who among those involved in the decision had tickets for matches at Wembley, or were intending to obtain/had been promised tickets.
Lockdowns were the first example of “making it up as they go along”.
Stone me. Surely people haven’t only just realised that the Government is making it up as they go along? I thought that a year ago!
And yes, they are. They ricochet from one stupid policy to another, driven by fear of not being liked coupled with not wanting the papers / press to say nasty things about them.
Nonsense. Government knows exactly what it is doing.
Welcome to the party, Noah!