William Hague attacks students’ ‘comfort blankets of cancellation’ and vows to protect free speech as former Tory leader becomes 160th Chancellor of Oxford University_Nhy
William Hague has attacked the ‘comfort blankets of cancellation’ while vowing to champion free speech as the new Chancellor of Oxford.
The former Tory leader said it was ‘of paramount importance’ to protect the free exchange of ideas as he was officially admitted to the role.
He also praised Labour’s decision to revive the former Tory government’s free speech bill, aimed at tackling campus censorship.
However, he warned the right to free speech should ‘never be an excuse for anti-Semitism’, following complaints from Jewish students over pro-Palestine protests.
Lord Hague will be the 160th Chancellor after succeeding Lord Patten, with a fixed term of 10 years.
His appointment comes after numerous incidents of Oxford students trying to ‘cancel’ and ‘no-platform’ speakers they find ‘offensive’.
Addressing a formal admission ceremony today at Oxford, he told dignitaries the university must be the ‘home of free speech’.
He said: ‘In an age in which ideas will change so rapidly, freedom of speech and of academic work and research will be of paramount importance.
Lord William Hague will be the 160th Chancellor after succeeding Lord Patten, with a fixed term of 10 years
Addressing a formal admission ceremony today at Oxford, he told dignitaries the university must be the ‘home of free speech’
Lord Hague has attacked the ‘comfort blankets of cancellation’ while vowing to champion free speech at the University of Oxford
‘We cannot prepare for the turbulent decades to come by shielding ourselves from inconvenient arguments, wrapping ourselves in comfort blankets of cancellation, or suppressing minority views.’
He said he ‘strongly welcomed’ the decision by ministers to revive the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act, which will place more responsibilities on universities to tackle cancel culture.
Students have a ‘duty to listen and include others’ and to have an ‘open mind’ to ‘diversity of thought’, he said.
‘Our university is a place where we can disagree vigorously while sheltering each other from the abuse and hatred that are so often a substitute for rational opinion,’ he added.
However, he touched upon the pro-Palestine protests at Oxford last year, which were criticised by Jewish student groups for facilitating anti-Semitic slurs.
He said: ‘Here we can debate the big global issues while understanding that those can never be an excuse for anti-Semitism.’
Victims of cancel culture at Oxford have included former Home Secretary Amber Rudd, the gender-critical academic Kathleen Stock, and author Helen Joyce, who last week faced a ‘transphobia’ protest during a talk.
Lord Hague said: ‘We do not need to agree on everything, indeed we should not…
‘The concern of a university is that opinions are reached on the basis of truth, reason and knowledge, which in turn requires thinking and speaking with freedom.’
Lord Hague won an election to the 800-year-old role after applications and voting were opened up on the internet for the first time
In his wide-ranging speech, Lord Hague also said Oxford should be at the forefront of tackling ‘the darker side of the new technological age’ which leads to ‘anxiety’ in young people.
He said Oxford should ‘be a place where we seek each other’s company, not stare into smartphones.’
Lord Hague won an election to the 800-year-old role after applications and voting were opened up on the internet for the first time.
He attended a comprehensive in Yorkshire and graduated from Oxford in 1982 having studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics.
The Chancellor is only a ceremonial head of the university but does give advice to the management.
