UK Politics

More than 60,000 arrested in 'chilling curb of free speech' as damning report exposes zealous policing of social media as 'Orwellian mess'​

A major free speech row erupted last night after it was revealed that more than 60,000 people have been arrested over the past five years for 'communications offences' – some as trivial as viewing disparaging TikTok videos.

The astonishing figure has been described as 'Orwellian', and having a 'chilling effect' in stifling opinions online.

The statistics – to be published in a hard-hitting report this week – also highlight the chaotic implementation of rules on 'malicious' messaging, with some police forces making 14 times more arrests under the powers than others.

The report, by campaign group Big Brother Watch, discloses that at least 62,199 people in the UK have been arrested for such offences over the past half-decade, with 18,510 being charged and 12,292 convicted.

Campaigners say that although a proportion of the arrests will be justifiable – such as intervention to stop threatening messages from abusive partners in domestic violence cases – the scope of the laws has spawned a rash of over-zealous policing of everyday communications.

The report cites the case of West Midlands Police visiting the home of a vulnerable teenage girl to accuse her over a TikTok post containing a teacher's image with negative comments.
www.dailymail.com

More than 60,000 arrested in 'chilling curb of free speech'

A major free speech row erupted last night after it was revealed that more than 60,000 people have been arrested over the past five years for 'communications offences'.
www.dailymail.com www.dailymail.com
 

The French mother who said 'non' to migrants: Woman living on the frontline of Europe's asylum crisis releases footage of young men in life jackets rushing past her property to catch dinghies going to Britain​

Screenshot from 2026-09-06 20-14-53.png

A Frenchwoman has described how migrants have made her terrified to stay in her home on the front line of the small-boat crisis, as she released CCTV of crowds swarming past in life jackets to catch dinghies bound for Britain.

Mother-of-two Héloïse Longuet, 44, said her 19th-century family farmhouse on the English Channel coast near Neufchâtel-Hardelot, south of Boulogne-sur-Mer, was now surrounded by young men living in illegal squats.

All have been drawn to the once quiet corner of northern France by criminals charging them around £1,000 a head for a place on an overcrowded inflatable heading for England.

Ms Longuet told the Daily Mail: 'The house is a holiday home which we were renovating, but it became surrounded by men trying to get to the beach.

'They congregate outside checking their phones for coordinates supplied by the smugglers, and then they try to get to the beach.

'In fact, there is no direct access to the beach across my land, but that did not stop at least three incursions.'

Ms Longuet said she has had to put up CCTV video cameras with warning signs, but makeshift camps have started to appear in the woods around the house.

Now the migrants make her fearful about staying in the area, especially as she has two young daughters, and protection from local police is minimal.
www.dailymail.com

The French mother who said 'non' to migrants

Héloïse Longuet said her 19th-century family farmhouse on the English Channel coast near Neufchâtel-Hardelot, south of Boulogne-sur-Mer, is surrounded by young men.
www.dailymail.com www.dailymail.com
 
LABOUR MP RACHAEL MASKELL:
  • MORE MIGRANTS FOR BRITAIN UNTIL WE REACH SATURATION - EXCEPT NOT IN MY BACK YARD !
 

Pretending to be gay, false domestic abuse claims and faking relationships with their prime minister's daughter: The 'scripts' migrants are using to claim asylum in Britain
Screenshot from 2026-09-07 21-06-09.png​

 
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