Westminster Diary - 9th February 2006

Thursday, 9th February 2006

I can say more of less whatever I want to in this article or in any public speech I make. There are some limits of course – I cannot make threats or incite others to commit a crime without risking prosecution myself, but I can express strong opinions which others may find objectionable or even offensive. Most people reading this will be glad I can, as long as they are equally free to disagree just as strongly and just as publicly. That is free speech and we rightly hold it dear. I think this is worth recalling given the events of the last few days.

I voted in Parliament last week to make it illegal to threaten those of another religion but not to insult or abuse their faith. I believe that was the right balance. If we had made it illegal to abuse or insult a religious belief, I do not think we would have given anyone much protection from harassment the law does not already provide, but we would certainly have reduced freedom of speech. That is not to say I approve of religious insults, but it seems to me that we do not test the strength of our belief in free speech when we listen to something we agree with, we test it when we hear something with which we profoundly disagree.

Being a part of British society means enjoying the right to speak your mind and respecting the rights of others to do the same, however outrageous you may find what they say. Your answer to them is to launch your counter-argument, not bricks or petrol bombs.

This is a key message for the small minority of British Muslims who have protested violently about the publication if anti-Islamic cartoons. I do not think that being British should have anything to do with being white or being Christian, but it should have a lot to do with tolerance of the views of others.

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Updated on Thursday, 9th February 2006