Rejected petition Ensure Freedom of Speech & Expression: Align UK Laws with Democratic Principles

We urge the Government to reform speech laws to protect free expression, vital in a democratic society. Speech that does not incite violence or harm should be safeguarded, ensuring individuals are not prosecuted for non-violent, historical, or controversial opinions.

More details

Current UK laws have led to imprisonment for non-violent statements or historic social media posts. This stifles dialogue, fosters self-censorship, and erodes trust in justice. Reforming laws to protect free expression, while prioritising alternatives like education to address hate speech, would ensure speech is criminalised only when inciting violence or direct harm. This approach avoids undermining rehabilitation, safeguards freedoms, and fosters open debate.

This petition was rejected

Why was this petition rejected?

There’s already a petition about this issue. We cannot accept a new petition when we already have one about a very similar issue.

You are more likely to get action on this issue if you sign and share a single petition.

You may wish to sign the following petition, which calls for a similar action:

Pass a new 'Freedom of Speech Protection Act'

https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/701561

We only reject petitions that don’t meet the petition standards.

Date submitted 24 November 2024
Get petition data (json format)

About petition data

The data shows the number of people who have signed the petition by country as well as in the constituency of each Member of Parliament. This data is available for all petitions on the site. It is not a list of people who have signed the petition. The only name that is shared on the site is that of the petition creator.