Why does Matt Goodwin hate free speech?

In August he wrote of how the government appeared “more interested in controlling our speech than our borders”, fretting over “renegades and outspoken critics who are losing their jobs, reputations, and freedoms for saying the wrong thing”.

Last October, after a man successfully appealed a conviction for burning a Koran in London while shouting obscenities about Islam Goodwin declared that the fight for free speech in Britain was “far from over”.

And only three weeks ago, he wrote that Britain’s “ruling class” was “silencing” debate about Islam in “one of the most serious assaults on free speech and free expression Britain has ever seen”.

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Rats in a Sack

So what happened when Labour said some hurty words about Goodwin on just day two of his candidacy? His party ran off and complained to the police, of course!

Reform has reported Labour to the police over a video attacking the candidate, showing a video in which he tells a Reform meeting: “I was lucky enough or unfortunate enough to be in Manchester a few days ago and the energy in this room is 10 times what it was in Manchester so congratulations.” The Labour Party account captioned the clip: “This is what Reform’s latest candidate thinks about where he’s standing to represent.”

Goodwin, a GB News presenter, said the clip was misleading as it had been deliberately taken out of context. He said his comments were not directed at Manchester but at the “dying” Tory Party conference which had taken place in the city shortly before.

All good knockabout fun, no? Not according to Goodwin or Reform, who claim it is a breach of the Representation of the People’s Act 1983, which bans any “false statement of fact” against a candidate.

In its complaint, Reform said the assertion that Goodwin insulted Manchester was a false statement of fact arising from “deliberate or reckless” misrepresentation and was “clearly intended to influence the outcome of the election”. If Labour or a party member was found to have breached the act, they could face a maximum penalty of an unlimited fine and a three-year ban from holding elective office, and Reform have vowed to launch a private prosecution if Greater Manchester Police fail to take action.

It’s all a far cry from the man who said involving the police over hurty words was being “used to erode free speech and try to control the officially approved narrative in this country”. Why is Matt Goodwin more interested in controlling our speech than our borders?