06/10/2026

18.00 Big Brother Watch

Birmingham ICC : Disraeli Theatre

Free Speech in a "papers, please" society

Sir Andrew Mitchell MP (Conservative Party, MP (Invited))
Lord Kempsell (Conservative Party, Life Peer (Invited))
Ella Whelan (Battle of Ideas, Co-convener and Journalist (Invited))
Silkie Carlo (Big Brother Watch, Director (Invited))

Free speech is in crisis. We ask: what needs to change? Our latest report, Britain's Free Speech Problem, reveals a postcode lottery for speech arrests, the harmful impact of online regulations, and a stream of laws clamping down on peaceful protest. Polling shows a majority of the public does not trust the Government to defend free expression. Join us to discuss the legal, cultural, and political answers to reviving this British tradition.