Two weeks ago, national news was sparked when former Home Secretary Suella Braverman was forced to cancel a speech at the University of Cambridge due to an increased security risk from pro-Palestinian protesters. Now, the Free Speech Union wants to bring her back, and is even offering to cover the security expenses.
Braverman’s speech, initially scheduled to take place at Corpus Christi College on 10 October, was part of an event with Cambridge University Conservative Association (CUCA). However, when the group Cambridge for Palestine announced a protest, CUCA, unable to meet the estimated £1500 security costs, had to cancel. Both CUCA and Braverman remained adamant that the event would take place, once the safety of the speaker and guests could be guaranteed.
While no new date has been announced for the event, it seems more likely than ever that it will indeed return to the CUCA calendar. The Free Speech Union has offered to cover the security costs for the event, in an effort to combat what Braverman called “mob-rule tactics”. Toby Young, founder of the FSU, told Varsity that the organisation planned on covering the costs through their Ian Mactaggart Fund.
The Fund has previously been used to cover security expenses for controversial events in Cambridge. Last year, when the screening of the film ‘Birthgap – Childless World’ drew large student protests, the FSU used the Ian Mactaggart Fund to hire security guards for the event, ensuring that it could go ahead.
Other local student groups have questioned whether additional security was really needed for the initial CUCA event, accusing Braverman of “scaremongering”. The cheerfully-named Organisation of Radical Cambridge Activists claimed that the heightened security concerns were “unfounded”, adding that the former Home Secretary was only trying to “protect [herself] from scrutiny”.
While Braverman insists that police advised her to reschedule the speech, the Cambridgeshire police told the Sunday Times that the event had been assessed as “low-risk”. However, other reporting has suggested that attempts to move the event to the Cambridge Union, which already had security present for a different event, were abandoned as police had advised the Union against adding Braverman to their schedule. The Cambridgeshire police has not responded to our request for comment on this issue.
Interestingly, a spokesperson for the University of Cambridge told the Sunday Times that it “fully supports freedom of speech within the law” and claimed that it would have “provided arrangements” for the CUCA event, if it had been made aware of it.
Before the Free Speech Union forks out £1,500 on private security to bring Braverman back to her old alma mater, CUCA should consider testing whether the University will stand by this statement and provide adequate arrangements for a rescheduled version of the event. It would certainly send a strong signal about Cambridge’s renewed commitment to free speech, if they, amid student protests and calls to “no-platform” speakers, went out of their way to ensure that a controversial speech could go ahead on their premises.
While Toby Young has confirmed that “[t]he FSU has reached out to Suella Braverman and CUCA and offered to pay the security costs”, CUCA told Varsity that “no arrangements has been reached between us, Suella’s team, and any other third party.” The president of CUCA Szymon Sawicki has previously told CAF that CUCA remains committed to finding a new date and venue for the event, as long as it can guarantee the safety of everyone involved.