Is this government threatening our basic freedoms?
Fri Dec 19 2025
Two years’ ago, the UN human rights high commissioner issued the UK with a warning. He said that new restrictions being imposed on the right to protest were deeply troubling. Two years’ later, we have a new government in charge and now the police are due to get even more powers to restrict repeat protests, like the central London Palestine solidarity demos.
That’s not all - this government also wants to introduce digital ID cards, facial recognition technology in town centres, shrink the number of trials by jury, and water down the European Convention on Human Rights.
Why have pro-Palestine demos prompted protest restrictions? What are the human rights laws our prime minister wants to constrain? And should we be afraid of becoming a surveillance state?
Ayeisha Thomas-Smith is joined by Sotez Chowdhury, director of activism and education at Amnesty International UK, to discuss.
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Produced by Katrina Gaffney and Margaret Welsh.
The New Economics Podcast is brought to you by the New Economics Foundation. Find out more about becoming a NEF supporter at: neweconomics.org/donate/build-a-better-future
New Economics Foundation is a registered charity in England and Wales. Charity No. 1055254
Music by Lee Rosevere, Free Music Archive: freemusicarchive.org/m... used under Creative Commons licence: creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/.
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Two years’ ago, the UN human rights high commissioner issued the UK with a warning. He said that new restrictions being imposed on the right to protest were deeply troubling. Two years’ later, we have a new government in charge and now the police are due to get even more powers to restrict repeat protests, like the central London Palestine solidarity demos. That’s not all - this government also wants to introduce digital ID cards, facial recognition technology in town centres, shrink the number of trials by jury, and water down the European Convention on Human Rights. Why have pro-Palestine demos prompted protest restrictions? What are the human rights laws our prime minister wants to constrain? And should we be afraid of becoming a surveillance state? Ayeisha Thomas-Smith is joined by Sotez Chowdhury, director of activism and education at Amnesty International UK, to discuss. Follow our Instagram: www.instagram.com/neweconomicspod/ Follow our Tiktok: www.tiktok.com/@neweconomicspod Produced by Katrina Gaffney and Margaret Welsh. The New Economics Podcast is brought to you by the New Economics Foundation. Find out more about becoming a NEF supporter at: neweconomics.org/donate/build-a-better-future New Economics Foundation is a registered charity in England and Wales. Charity No. 1055254 Music by Lee Rosevere, Free Music Archive: freemusicarchive.org/m... used under Creative Commons licence: creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/.