Left UK Politicians Exploit Widdecombe Attack to Push Censorship

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Left-wing British politicians seized on the attack that took Ann Widdecombe’s life to demand more social media censorship — despite zero evidence the accused was radicalized online.

The political and media establishments were quick to condemn British citizens for “speculation” over potential motives behind the attack on the former Conservative government minister and Brexit Party Member of European Parliament. They accused her long-time allies, like Nigel Farage, of exploiting her loss for political purposes.

But contrary to Widdecombe’s decades-long defense of free speech, Deputy Leader of the Labour Party Lucy Powell took to the House of Commons floor to advocate for more government speech restrictions.

“We do need to tackle some of the online algorithms and business models which heighten this kind of polarisation and hate towards those in public life, and we must do more to tackle this with urgency.”

Powell claimed to have “greatly admired and respected her outspokenness, her fearlessness, and her ability to not take herself too seriously.”

Yet Powell herself previously described Widdecombe’s Reform UK party as a “poison and cancer” which must be defeated.

Widdecombe faced decades of accusations of spreading “hate” over her deeply held religious beliefs — her opposition to the LGBT movement, gay marriage, open borders, and abortion. The left-wing Labour-aligned Guardian newspaper previously described the Brexiteer as a “Tory hate figure.” The Labour ally Trades Union Congress accused Widdecombe of “spouting hate speech.”

There is zero evidence backing Powell’s claim that online “hate” contributed to the attack.

But there does appear to be evidence that far-left ideology played a role — communist literature was allegedly found at the home of the current suspect.

In the immediate aftermath, Farage and others faced heavy criticism for suggesting it was a “premeditated” act. Police repeatedly briefed against that idea. But Counter Terrorism Police South East took over the case Monday — a dramatic reversal.

The left’s attempt to weaponize Widdecombe’s case for state control of the internet mirrors the Tory effort after the Islamist terror attack that took Conservative MP David Amess’s life.

Despite radical Islam being the apparent motivation for Amess’s attacker — later confirmed in court — then-Tory MP Mark Francois introduced “David’s Law” to end online anonymity and combat so-called hate speech. The legislation was ultimately abandoned after steep public backlash.

The charges remain allegations. The case has not been proven in court.

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