Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Freedom-restricting harassment crippling democracy: Report

Dame Sara Khan says there is a growing climate of threats and harassment, which is creating a pervasively censorious culture antithetical to our democracy

Freedom-restricting harassment crippling democracy: Report

The Government’s adviser on social cohesion and resilience, Dame Sara Khan, has said Britain’s diverse and cohesive democracy, built on centuries of hard‑won rights, was facing numerous threats.

In the study titled 'The Khan review', she said now there is a growing climate of threats and harassment leading to serious censorship that is not just affecting our politicians, but members of the public too. This was creating a pervasively censorious culture antithetical to our democratic way of life, she added.


Terming it 'freedom-restricting harassment', Sara said unlike terrorism or foreign state interference, many of these cohesion risks are "chronic, insidious and often sit below the radar".

Their impact is not actively measured or even fully appreciated, but they are eroding cohesion and our democratic norms at an individual, institutional and societal level, she observed.

Sara observed that this threat is undermining academic freedom, press freedom, the arts and cultural sector and civic society.

The study had polled a nationally representative sample of 1,279 respondents aged above 16 in the country, and 85 per cent believe freedom-restricting harassment currently occurs in

the UK, with 60 per cent believing the problem is worse than five years ago.

Nearly 44 per cent of respondents claimed they have witnessed freedom-restricting harassment online, and equally 44 per cent said they have witnessed it in person.

She said this trend crosses ideological and social divides, affecting individuals from all walks of life, and warned that cherry-picking some victims and perpetrators over others to suit one's narrative will be self-defeating.

Evidence gathered during this study shows a widespread phenomenon of extreme forms of harassment leading individuals into silence, self-censoring, or abandoning their democratic rights.

Sara said the perpetrators indulge in doxing, inciting hatred and violence against individuals and their families, sending death and rape threats, and other forms of threatening behaviour. This form of harassment and resultant censorship is creating a ‘chilling impact’ on freedom of expression and other democratic freedoms, she added.

Nearly 27 per cent of respondents claimed they experienced ‘life altering’ freedom-restricting harassment. When asked about the impact, 77 per cent from this group reported either not being able to fully express their opinion or experiencing a decline in their personal freedom.

Around 61 per cent of this group took specific actions, with 20 per cent coming off social media and 17 per cent saying they had taken additional security measures.

The majority of the public are concerned about the impact of freedom-restricting harassment on individual liberty. They felt it undermines people’s ability to live and speak freely.

The report lamented that though the victims of freedom-restricting harassment suffer devastating impacts, yet are often not treated as victims or offered the support they need.

National strategy needed

Dame Sara held 30 meetings with local authorities across the country and 46 with civil society groups.

She said while local authorities and responders are struggling to manage evolving social cohesion threats, Whitehall lacks a national strategic approach to help improve local authorities’ capabilities.

She noted that while the Defending Democracy Taskforce seeks to reduce the risk of foreign interference to the UK’s democratic processes, they do not focus on the chronic threat to democracy from domestic and non-state actors engaged in disinformation, conspiracies and extremism.

The report stated that a cohesion response unit, staffed by policing, education and counter-extremism officials, was needed to tackle “early tensions” and “live flashpoint incidents” in local areas before they spiral out of control.

More For You

Trump

Trump said the suspect had been arrested earlier for 'terrible crimes,' including child sex abuse, grand theft auto and false imprisonment, but was released under the Biden administration because Cuba refused to take him back.

Getty Images

Trump says accused in Dallas motel beheading will face first-degree murder charge

US PRESIDENT Donald Trump has described Chandra Mouli “Bob” Nagamallaiah, the Indian-origin motel manager killed in Dallas, as a “well-respected person” and said the accused will face a first-degree murder charge.

Nagamallaiah, 50, was killed last week at the Downtown Suites motel by co-worker Yordanis Cobos-Martinez, a 37-year-old undocumented Cuban immigrant with a criminal history.

Keep ReadingShow less
Starmer Mandelson

Starmer talks with Mandelson during a welcome reception at the ambassador's residence on February 26, 2025 in Washington, DC.

Getty

Starmer under pressure from party MPs after Mandelson dismissal

PRIME MINISTER Keir Starmer is facing questions within the Labour party after the sacking of US ambassador Peter Mandelson.

Mandelson was removed last week after Bloomberg published emails showing messages of support he sent following Jeffrey Epstein’s conviction for sex offences. The dismissal comes just ahead of US president Donald Trump’s state visit.

Keep ReadingShow less
Nepal’s new leader pledges to act on Gen Z calls to end corruption

Officials greet newly-elected Prime Minister of Nepal's interim government Sushila Karki (R) as she arrives at the prime minister's office in Kathmandu on September 14, 2025. (Photo by PRABIN RANABHAT/AFP via Getty Images)

Nepal’s new leader pledges to act on Gen Z calls to end corruption

NEPAL’s new interim prime minister Sushila Karki on Sunday (14) pledged to act on protesters’ calls to end corruption and restore trust in government, as the country struggles with the aftermath of its worst political unrest in decades.

“We have to work according to the thinking of the Gen Z generation,” Karki said in her first address to the nation since taking office on Friday (12). “What this group is demanding is the end of corruption, good governance and economic equality. We will not stay here more than six months in any situation. We will complete our responsibilities and hand over to the next parliament and ministers.”

Keep ReadingShow less
UK secures £1.25bn US investment ahead of Trump’s visit

US president Donald Trump and UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer arrive at Trump International Golf Links on July 28, 2025 in Balmedie, Scotland. (Photo by Jane Barlow-WPA Pool/Getty Images)

UK secures £1.25bn US investment ahead of Trump’s visit

THE British government has announced over £1.25 billion ($1.69bn) in fresh investment from major US financial firms, including PayPal, Bank of America, Citigroup and S&P Global, ahead of a state visit by president Donald Trump.

The investment is expected to create 1,800 jobs across London, Edinburgh, Belfast and Manchester, and deepen transatlantic financial ties, the Department for Business and Trade said.

Keep ReadingShow less
Nearly 150,000 join anti-migrant protest in London as clashes erupt

Protesters wave Union Jack and St George's England flags during the "Unite The Kingdom" rally on Westminster Bridge by the Houses of Parliament on September 13, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

Nearly 150,000 join anti-migrant protest in London as clashes erupt

MORE THAN 100,000 protesters marched through central London on Saturday (13), carrying flags of England and Britain and scuffling with police in one of the UK's biggest right-wing demonstrations of modern times.

London's Metropolitan Police said the "Unite the Kingdom" march, organised by anti-immigrant activist Tommy Robinson, was attended by nearly 150,000 people, who were kept apart from a "Stand Up to Racism" counter-protest attended by around 5,000.

Keep ReadingShow less