Stand and fight to defeat the twin threats to liberty

LIBERTY is one of the central pillars of our civilisation.

- Leo McKinstry

Britain is the country that introduced Magna Carta, pioneered Parliamentary democracy, defeated Nazi tyranny and codified human rights after the Second World War.

But today freedom here is under unprecedented threat. The danger comes from a sinister pincer movement that seeks to exploit the climate of authoritarianism that is sweeping across our land.

One arm represents the vast increase in the powers of the state in response to Covid, from bans on protests to wide-ranging travel restrictions.

It is a pattern graphically highlighted in the plan – now under consideration by the Government – to impose a passport scheme on the hospitality trade, whereby customers could be barred entry to premises if they fail to provide proof they have been vaccinated.

“Show us your papers”, the cry of totalitarian regimes down the ages, is not something we would associate with the Great British Pub. But it is symbolic of the direction our society is heading.