Have the Tories finally woken up to the extremism problem?
Spectator (UK)Mar 14
UK Unveils New Definition of Extremism
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The Facts
The UK government introduced its new definition of extremism Thursday, changing it to "the promotion or advancement of an ideology based on violence, hatred or intolerance" if used for particular goals.
Such goals include attempts to "negate or destroy" the rights and freedoms of others, "undermine, overturn or replace" the UK's parliamentary democracy and democratic rights, or "intentionally create a permissive environment for others to achieve" the first two provisions.
The Spin
Right narrative
Finally, the government has acknowledged that accepting intolerance leads to an intolerant society. This measure will stop the government from engaging with or providing money to groups that fuel the flames of violence — whether they're neo-Nazis, radical Islamists, or any intolerant group. Anyone who's not a member of these groups needn't worry about the government infringing on their rights.
Left narrative
Even before this definition was codified into government policy, the ruling Conservative Party had identified leading Muslim rights activists as extreme and divisive. Now the broad brush this definition creates could empower the government to go after peaceful protesters and bar them from accessing the government.
Nerd narrative
There's a 37% chance that the UK will have a Conservative Prime Minister on Jan. 1, 2030, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
