The results of an independent opinion poll commissioned by the Free Speech Union show that people strongly support the FSU’s five-point manifesto (see below). The headline finding is that only two per cent of the public strongly agree that the Government is doing a good job of standing up for free speech. Among 25-49 year-olds, that number falls to one per cent.
In light of the poll, the FSU is asking members of the Conservative Party who care about free speech to write to the five candidates remaining in the leadership race, urging them to do more to defend it and asking them where they stand on each of the five points in our manifesto. If you’re a Conservative Party member, please use our new campaigning tool to send the candidates an email. We have created a template and you’re welcome to use that, or feel free to adapt it. It’s very simple to use and the whole process only takes a couple of minutes.
This is the best chance we’ll have to extract a commitment from the next Prime Minister that they will stand up for free speech so if you’re a member of the Party please do email the five candidates. If enough Conservative members contact them to ask where they stand, I don’t see how they can avoid saying something – and in due course the FSU will be doing what it can to raise the salience of free speech when the race gets to the final stage.
The Free Speech Union Manifesto
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