I bow to no one in my defence of free speech and open debate as the best way to expose and tackle extremism, to resolve conflict and intractable problems, and to help educate young people. I have lectured and written widely on the importance of free speech. As a University Vice Chancellor, I argued in an annual lecture that a central purpose of Higher Education is the imperative to teach students to disagree agreeably. As Higher Education Minister I supported the right of the Oxford Union to invite the BNP’s Nick Griffin. Because extremism, unless it is violent, needs challenging and exposing …
