Editors Blog
Any fears over free speech?
23 Oct 09
BNP appearance on "Question Time" is no threat to public order
The prospect of censorship always did far more to attract publicity to a cause than allowing it to attempt to make its voice heard unhindered, and so it proved with the issue whether Nick Griffin, leader of the British National Party, should be allowed to appear on the BBC's "Question Time".
Arguments against the invitation came from those who objected to their TV licence money being used in that way, to those who suggested it would lead to an increase in racist attacks.
As for the first, I suspect the majority of licence payers object to some content or other on the BBC, and if the corporation is to preserve its (rightly) prized independence, it must be allowed to make its own decisions, provided these are in line with its charter.
The second point is unlikely to be demonstrated one way or the other, but it could equally be argued that some who might be attracted at first glance to the BNP would have second thoughts having viewed Mr Griffin's grilling by the studio audience last night.
Much better in principle that the BNP and its policies are exposed to the glare of public scrutiny than that it remains some semi-underground movement with a whiff of danger or excitement to those inclined to cast a protest vote against one or more of the mainstream parties. Their spokespeople quickly find that any weaknesses or comments out of line are ruthlessly exposed by the media, and it seems unlikely on last night's showing that a public platform like this is going to allow the BNP to put across some sanitised version of its agenda.
As I previously observed in relation to the case of the far right Dutch politician Geert Wilders (click here to view) – and I was pleased to see that the relevant appeal tribunal overturned our Government's ban on him entering the UK – we have laws in place to penalise any public utterances likely to incite hatred against racial or other groups. We therefore do not need a censorship system in addition – and what is the point if it is obviously counterproductive?