Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Diversity and Freedom of Belief: Public Institutions

Wednesday 24 November 2021 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 2 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Gareth Bacon questioned the Cambridge Union's handling of banned speakers, agreeing with John Cleese's stance on the issue.
  • The Minister expressed that universities should educate on core values like freedom of speech, not comedians.
  • Joanna Cherry raised concerns about the treatment of women in public institutions who believe sex matters, citing Professor Kathleen Stock's case.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Gareth Bacon Con Orpington
Culture, Media & Sport Religion & Faith
Context

The MP is concerned about issues surrounding freedom of speech and belief in universities, citing a specific incident involving John Cleese.

Question

My hon. Friend may be aware that John Cleese recently felt that he needed to pull out of speaking to the Cambridge Union following the revelation that it had blacklisted certain people from speaking. Although the union's president has now rowed back on the claim that a list of banned speakers exists, will my hon. Friend outline what the Government are doing to promote freedom of speech and belief in our universities to make sure that students are exposed to a range of views even though they may themselves disagree with them?

Answer from Kemi Badenoch

I completely agree with my hon. Friend. Indeed, John Cleese was quite right to highlight this issue. However, it should not be up to comedians to educate students on core values such as freedom of speech and freedom of belief; the universities themselves should do that. Those that seek to bully, harass and intimidate others because of their views risk undermining our precious freedoms. Such behaviour should not and will not be tolerated on university campuses. That is why we have introduced the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill to strengthen freedom of speech and academic freedom in universities and ensure that individuals can seek redress.

Answered
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Q2 Gareth Bacon Con Orpington
Culture, Media & Sport Standards & Ethics Religion & Faith
Context

The MP is concerned about issues surrounding freedom of speech and belief in universities, citing a specific incident involving John Cleese.

Question

My hon. Friend may be aware that John Cleese recently felt that he needed to pull out of speaking to the Cambridge Union following the revelation that it had blacklisted certain people from speaking. Although the union's president has now rowed back on the claim that a list of banned speakers exists, will my hon. Friend outline what the Government are doing to promote freedom of speech and belief in our universities to make sure that students are exposed to a range of views even though they may themselves disagree with them?

Answer from Kemi Badenoch

I completely agree with my hon. Friend. Indeed, John Cleese was quite right to highlight this issue. However, it should not be up to comedians to educate students on core values such as freedom of speech and freedom of belief; the universities themselves should do that. Those that seek to bully, harass and intimidate others because of their views risk undermining our precious freedoms. Such behaviour should not and will not be tolerated on university campuses. That is why we have introduced the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill to strengthen freedom of speech and academic freedom in universities and ensure that individuals can seek redress.

Answered
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Q3 Joanna Cherry SNP
Women & Equalities
Context

The MP is concerned about the treatment of women in public institutions who are being hounded for expressing beliefs that sex matters.

Question

Across the United Kingdom, women in public institutions are being hounded for the belief that sex matters in life as well as in law. I have in mind the case of Professor Kathleen Stock at Sussex University, but there are many other women suffering the same fate who do not have such a high public profile. What support can the Minister offer to such women?

Answer from Kemi Badenoch

I thank the hon. and learned Lady for bringing that question to me. She is absolutely right. I have been appalled by the disgraceful treatment of Professor Kathleen Stock. I think that we, as a Government, should do more, and I am personally looking into what we can do in terms of workplace harassment and bullying, which a lot of that behaviour falls under. I hope that I will be able to work with the hon. and learned Lady on this issue more closely.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Concrete actions or timelines were not provided

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