We are delighted to welcome Bernadette (‘Bernie’) Spofforth onto ‘That’s Debatable!’ this week. The FSU offered to defend Bernie after she was arrested for a social media post on X on 29th July in the wake of the tragic Southport stabbings. She was held in custody for 36 hours on suspicion of publishing written material to stir up racial hatred and false communications – this was in spite of the fact that she added the caveat “if this is true”, and deleted the relevant tweet when she discovered it wasn’t. In August, Cheshire Police confirmed Ms Spofforth had been arrested “in relation to social media post containing inaccurate information” and that she had been bailed “pending further enquiries”. However, in a video first posted to X, Bernie said the force had now decided to take NFA, or ‘no further action’. Her message continued: “Firstly, thank you for all of your messages, and I’m so sorry I haven’t responded or replied to any of you, but I couldn’t. I would have been locked up in a cell again for breaching bail conditions if I had”. Today’s conversation provides a first-hand account of the worrying state of free expression in the UK and you can find more background information on Bernie’s ordeal here.

‘That's Debatable!’  is edited by Jason Clift.