Free speech is in peril in Britain as the rate of non-crime hate incidents is “not slowing down”, according to campaigner Dr Benjamin Jones.
Jones, from the Free Speech Union, joined Tom Harwood and Miriam Cates on GB News to discuss the case of journalist Allison Pearson, who was visited by police for a tweet she made in 2023.
Pearson, 64, has been embroiled in a feud with Essex Police, claiming she was told by them she had been “unethical” to report her experience.
Speaking on GB News, Jones fears there are plenty more cases like Pearson’s and there will be more to come.
“In the last ten years, since this concept was introduced in its modern form, a quarter of a million entries have been recorded against people”, he said.
“Obviously, there’s been a story this week of Allison Pearson. There have been numerous incidents that have attracted headlines in recent years. Amber Rudd, for example.
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“There have been ludicrous cases that have crossed our books, or we have helped our members get entries removed from their record.
“It’s absolutely endemic and it is not slowing down.”
Pearson branded the situation “Kafkaesque”, and said the officers who approached her appeared confused.
Pearson posted on social media: "[Essex Police] say it was 'unethical' of me to report my awful experience at the hands of two constables.
"Really? The British people deserve to be informed about the Kafkaesque state of their justice system. Instead of solving frightening crime, police are frightening people.
A spokesman from Essex Police said: "Essex Police cuts crime. There were over 9,000 fewer reported offences in the last year and 20,000 fewer than five years ago.
"Our officers and staff, some of which are military veterans, work 24 hours a day, seven days a week to keep the public safe and investigate crime.
"We police without fear or favour and when a crime is reported, we investigate. That’s what we do and that’s what the people of Essex expect.
"There has been a large amount of false reporting about an ongoing investigation and the force has registered complaints with Ipso."
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Jones, from the Free Speech Union, joined Tom Harwood and Miriam Cates on GB News to discuss the case of journalist Allison Pearson, who was visited by police for a tweet she made in 2023.
Pearson, 64, has been embroiled in a feud with Essex Police, claiming she was told by them she had been “unethical” to report her experience.
Speaking on GB News, Jones fears there are plenty more cases like Pearson’s and there will be more to come.
“In the last ten years, since this concept was introduced in its modern form, a quarter of a million entries have been recorded against people”, he said.
“Obviously, there’s been a story this week of Allison Pearson. There have been numerous incidents that have attracted headlines in recent years. Amber Rudd, for example.
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“There have been ludicrous cases that have crossed our books, or we have helped our members get entries removed from their record.
“It’s absolutely endemic and it is not slowing down.”
Pearson branded the situation “Kafkaesque”, and said the officers who approached her appeared confused.
Pearson posted on social media: "[Essex Police] say it was 'unethical' of me to report my awful experience at the hands of two constables.
"Really? The British people deserve to be informed about the Kafkaesque state of their justice system. Instead of solving frightening crime, police are frightening people.
A spokesman from Essex Police said: "Essex Police cuts crime. There were over 9,000 fewer reported offences in the last year and 20,000 fewer than five years ago.
"Our officers and staff, some of which are military veterans, work 24 hours a day, seven days a week to keep the public safe and investigate crime.
"We police without fear or favour and when a crime is reported, we investigate. That’s what we do and that’s what the people of Essex expect.
"There has been a large amount of false reporting about an ongoing investigation and the force has registered complaints with Ipso."
Find Out More...