US State Department Says UK Human Rights ‘Worsened’ Under Starmer – Guido Fawkes

READ IN FULL: US State Department Says UK Human Rights ‘Worsened’ Under Starmer

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The US State Department’s latest annual report on human rights practices – published last night – says the situation has got worse in the UK. Free speech is in the spotlight…

Flagged were:

• Restrictions “on political speech deemed “hateful” or “offensive” as well as speech within “Public Spaces Protections Orders” areas (allowing local councils to limit speech rights within designated areas) and “Safe Access Zones” (limiting speech rights around abortion clinics).”
• Law “prohibits expressions of “hatred” toward persons’ with fines or imprisonment as penalties.”
• “There were laws in the United Kingdom (UK) that restricted freedom of speech in certain areas or allowed local councils to establish areas with restrictions on freedom of speech.”
• Online Safety Act “defined the category of “online harm” and expressly expanded Ofcom’s authority to include American media and technology firms with a substantial number of British users, regardless of whether they had a corporate presence in the UK.”
• “Expansive and unclear restrictions on potentially prejudicial reporting on ongoing court and tribunal proceedings limited the freedom of the press.”
• “The Scottish government implemented the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act, including the introduction of offences ‘stirring up hatred.’”
• “In the wake of an attack in Southport in which three young girls were stabbed to death, local and national government officials repeatedly intervened to chill speech as to the identity and motives of the attacker”
  • “The Crown Prosecution Service shared a video online stating that citizens should “Think before you post!” and threatening legal consequences for violations of the law.“
• “In July, a man was jailed and handed an eight-week sentence for posting a meme suggesting a link between migrants and knife crime. In October, an individual was convicted in England for engaging in silent prayer in violation of a “safe zone.””
• “Since the October 2023 Hamas terrorist attack on Israel, the NGO Community Security Trust recorded a large increase in antisemitic incidents across the UK. Reports of antisemitic incidents in the UK in the first half of the year reached a record high of 1,978 anti-Jewish hate incidents, an increase from 964 for the same period in 2023.”

The State Department concludes that “the human rights situation worsened in the United Kingdom during the year.” When you’re run by the human rights lawyers…

Read the full report below: