There are always limits to freedom of speech. Those limits vary depending on the traditions of different nations and legal systems and perhaps on political circumstances, too.
Back in 1919, the American jurist Oliver Wendell Holmes famously noted one limitation by arguing that no one has the freedom to yell out “fire” wrongly in a crowded theatre. It could lead to panic and potentially the loss of life. America’s First Amendment nevertheless is a landmark, saying that “Congress shall make no law …. abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances”.
Yet, the Holmes analogy – qualifying when freedom of speech can be abused – has been relied upon in hundreds of American constitutional cases for obvious reasons.
In the UK, the sense of freedom of speech remains strong but – unlike the American habit of spelling things out in a written constitution – the British remain somewhat vague about what such freedom entails and where it must be limited.
That vagueness illuminates a bitter row right now about the treatment and sentencing of a convicted British criminal and her inflammatory tweets. The Lucy Connolly case touches on the political faultlines in the UK that have opened up over migration, race and legitimate – or inflammatory – political debate.
Connolly is a childminder from Northampton. Last year, a deranged young man stabbed three young girls to death at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport. This was one of the most appalling crimes anyone can imagine. On social media, rumours started that the killer was an asylum seeker. Connolly tweeted that she wanted “mass deportation now” and suggested setting fire “to all the [expletive] hotels full of the [expletive] for all I care … if that makes me a racist so be it”.
She then deleted the tweet a few hours later. Anti-migrant riots and other disturbances followed the killings and led to a police crackdown, with Connolly among those arrested. She was charged, pleaded guilty to inciting racial hatred, then sentenced to 31 months in jail. This was a prison sentence longer than the sentences imposed on some of the rioters.
It is obviously possible to be appalled about Connolly’s inflammatory tweet and also to conclude that such a long jail sentence was very severe for the crime that she admitted. The Connolly case has, however, opened up not just a freedom of speech debate but also the idea among some on the right and far right of politics and in sections of the media that she is some kind of free speech martyr. She isn’t. Her tweet was nasty, inflammatory and part of a pattern. She had previously posted about people from Somalia along with a vomit emoji.
The Reform UK party leader, Nigel Farage, with his unerring sense of how to make news, is said to want to take Connolly to the US to appear before Congress. Presumably, this is to suggest that the UK has become some kind of anti-freedom of speech nation. It hasn’t. Nonetheless, the Connolly case is revelatory about the divisions in British society.
Lucy Connolly's tweet was nasty, inflammatory and part of a pattern
Opinion polls show Reform up to 28 per cent of the vote while the governing Labour party is at 20 per cent and the Conservatives and other parties trail behind those figures. Mr Farage is rarely out of the news. His genius is to point to real or not-so-real problems in British society and magnify them to his own advantage. Recently he’s been talking about deporting hundreds of thousands of irregular migrants to some unnamed foreign destination.
The rise of Reform, the Connolly case and the demonstrations at hotels used by migrants awaiting processing have led to a degree of panic in the Labour and Conservative parties. But perhaps, we all need to do that most difficult of tasks and to be calm and think.
August is known to British journalists as the “silly season”. Now in September, politics and journalism tend to return to more sober matters ahead of October’s party conferences. Second, Reform polling at 28 per cent may be a shock, but that means 72 per cent of British people are not planning to vote for Mr Farage. He’s loved by a significant group but loathed by many more. Third, a general election probably will not happen until 2029. The Farage genius in making news headlines, along with attempts to pretend that Connolly is a free speech martyr, will not solve Britain’s complex difficulties over migration.
As for the right to freedom of speech, since Mr Farage and his cohorts are on television and newspaper front pages more often than any other British political personality or party, we can probably agree that his views are far from being censored.
Mr Farage’s choice to defend someone who made inflammatory remarks about migration is, however, interesting. It’s not quite yelling “fire” in a crowded theatre, but it may sound like agreeing with those who like to stoke the flames of fear.
Hili 2: Unesco World Heritage site
The site is part of the Hili archaeological park in Al Ain. Excavations there have proved the existence of the earliest known agricultural communities in modern-day UAE. Some date to the Bronze Age but Hili 2 is an Iron Age site. The Iron Age witnessed the development of the falaj, a network of channels that funnelled water from natural springs in the area. Wells allowed settlements to be established, but falaj meant they could grow and thrive. Unesco, the UN's cultural body, awarded Al Ain's sites - including Hili 2 - world heritage status in 2011. Now the most recent dig at the site has revealed even more about the skilled people that lived and worked there.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
ABU DHABI ORDER OF PLAY
Starting at 10am:
Daria Kasatkina v Qiang Wang
Veronika Kudermetova v Annet Kontaveit (10)
Maria Sakkari (9) v Anastasia Potapova
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova v Ons Jabeur (15)
Donna Vekic (16) v Bernarda Pera
Ekaterina Alexandrova v Zarina Diyas
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Company profile
Date started: 2015
Founder: John Tsioris and Ioanna Angelidaki
Based: Dubai
Sector: Online grocery delivery
Staff: 200
Funding: Undisclosed, but investors include the Jabbar Internet Group and Venture Friends
Sam Smith
Where: du Arena, Abu Dhabi
When: Saturday November 24
Rating: 4/5
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
TOUCH RULES
Touch is derived from rugby league. Teams consist of up to 14 players with a maximum of six on the field at any time.
Teams can make as many substitutions as they want during the 40 minute matches.
Similar to rugby league, the attacking team has six attempts - or touches - before possession changes over.
A touch is any contact between the player with the ball and a defender, and must be with minimum force.
After a touch the player performs a “roll-ball” - similar to the play-the-ball in league - stepping over or rolling the ball between the feet.
At the roll-ball, the defenders have to retreat a minimum of five metres.
A touchdown is scored when an attacking player places the ball on or over the score-line.
Important questions to consider
1. Where on the plane does my pet travel?
There are different types of travel available for pets:
- Manifest cargo
- Excess luggage in the hold
- Excess luggage in the cabin
Each option is safe. The feasibility of each option is based on the size and breed of your pet, the airline they are traveling on and country they are travelling to.
2. What is the difference between my pet traveling as manifest cargo or as excess luggage?
If traveling as manifest cargo, your pet is traveling in the front hold of the plane and can travel with or without you being on the same plane. The cost of your pets travel is based on volumetric weight, in other words, the size of their travel crate.
If traveling as excess luggage, your pet will be in the rear hold of the plane and must be traveling under the ticket of a human passenger. The cost of your pets travel is based on the actual (combined) weight of your pet in their crate.
3. What happens when my pet arrives in the country they are traveling to?
As soon as the flight arrives, your pet will be taken from the plane straight to the airport terminal.
If your pet is traveling as excess luggage, they will taken to the oversized luggage area in the arrival hall. Once you clear passport control, you will be able to collect them at the same time as your normal luggage. As you exit the airport via the ‘something to declare’ customs channel you will be asked to present your pets travel paperwork to the customs official and / or the vet on duty.
If your pet is traveling as manifest cargo, they will be taken to the Animal Reception Centre. There, their documentation will be reviewed by the staff of the ARC to ensure all is in order. At the same time, relevant customs formalities will be completed by staff based at the arriving airport.
4. How long does the travel paperwork and other travel preparations take?
This depends entirely on the location that your pet is traveling to. Your pet relocation compnay will provide you with an accurate timeline of how long the relevant preparations will take and at what point in the process the various steps must be taken.
In some cases they can get your pet ‘travel ready’ in a few days. In others it can be up to six months or more.
5. What vaccinations does my pet need to travel?
Regardless of where your pet is traveling, they will need certain vaccinations. The exact vaccinations they need are entirely dependent on the location they are traveling to. The one vaccination that is mandatory for every country your pet may travel to is a rabies vaccination.
Other vaccinations may also be necessary. These will be advised to you as relevant. In every situation, it is essential to keep your vaccinations current and to not miss a due date, even by one day. To do so could severely hinder your pets travel plans.
Source: Pawsome Pets UAE
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What drives subscription retailing?
Once the domain of newspaper home deliveries, subscription model retailing has combined with e-commerce to permeate myriad products and services.
The concept has grown tremendously around the world and is forecast to thrive further, according to UnivDatos Market Insights’ report on recent and predicted trends in the sector.
The global subscription e-commerce market was valued at $13.2 billion (Dh48.5bn) in 2018. It is forecast to touch $478.2bn in 2025, and include the entertainment, fitness, food, cosmetics, baby care and fashion sectors.
The report says subscription-based services currently constitute “a small trend within e-commerce”. The US hosts almost 70 per cent of recurring plan firms, including leaders Dollar Shave Club, Hello Fresh and Netflix. Walmart and Sephora are among longer established retailers entering the space.
UnivDatos cites younger and affluent urbanites as prime subscription targets, with women currently the largest share of end-users.
That’s expected to remain unchanged until 2025, when women will represent a $246.6bn market share, owing to increasing numbers of start-ups targeting women.
Personal care and beauty occupy the largest chunk of the worldwide subscription e-commerce market, with changing lifestyles, work schedules, customisation and convenience among the chief future drivers.
Crops that could be introduced to the UAE
1: Quinoa
2. Bathua
3. Amaranth
4. Pearl and finger millet
5. Sorghum
A list of the animal rescue organisations in the UAE
Red flags
- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
- Unregulated structured products or complex investments often used to bypass traditional safeguards.
- Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
- Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
- Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.
Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
