On 7th December 2022, the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill was dealt a severe blow at the House of Lords, as peers removed the statutory tort provision completely from the Bill. On 29th December 2022, a group of concerned mathematicians sent the letter below to express their support for the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill. 

Key events after the letter was sent

1. 29/12/2022: The letter above, signed by 15 mathematicians, is sent to Claire Coutinho, the minister in charge of the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill. A fair bit of media coverage of the letter ensues, including a prominent Telegraph article.

2. 27/1/2023: Claire Coutinho replies to the letter. In her reply, emailed to Prof Abhishek Saha (the lead drafter of the letter), she affirms her strong support for academic freedom and indicates her continued support for the statutory tort in the Bill. She requests a meeting with Abhishek Saha to discuss these issues further. 

3. 6/2/2023: Claire Coutinho holds a half hour online meeting with Abhishek Saha. They discuss the free speech climate and censorship at universities, decolonisation of mathematics, and various aspects of the Bill. She tells him that she is determined that the tort will be there in some form or the other in the final Act. 

4. 7/2/2023: Claire Coutinho brings the tort back! Speaking on the floor of the house, she says, "our generation is facing our own battle for freedom: the freedom to express our opinions and debate controversial ideas without fear or favour. Ironically, this is happening in our universities, which traditionally have been the very institutions that have challenged prevailing wisdom [...] I have spoken at length to leaders and academics in the higher education sector. I stand firm in my belief that the tort is an essential part of the Bill, and I disagree with its removal." The Commons votes 283-161 to restore the tort in full. 

5. 21/3/2023: The House of Lords weakens the tort again. According to the Willets amendment which is supported by the Lords, the tort can only be used after the complaints scheme has been exhausted.

6. March to May, 2023: Claire Coutinho continues her correspondence with academics and free speech advocates as well as reaches out to political opponents with the goal of finding an acceptable compromise on the Bill. Several more letters were exchanged in this period between Saha and his colleagues and Claire Coutinho concerning  free speech issues and the possible compromises on the tort; these letters are not intended to be publicised. 

7. 2/5/2023: The House of Commons considers the Lords Amendment and strengthens the tort slightly. It adds the provision that a) loss can be pecuniary or non-pecuniary, and b) For claims involving just an injunction, there is no need to first exhaust the complaints scheme. 

8. 10/5/2023: The House of Lords finally accepts the Commons version and the bill passes both houses. It receives Royal Assent the next day, thus becoming the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023.