Britain used to be a beacon of free speech… don’t bank on it that it still is

IT is as astonishing to write these words as it is chilling: In Britain in 2023, a bank can close your account if it disagrees with your politics.

This is what has happened to Nigel Farage, the former leader of Ukip and, for better or for worse, probably the most influential politician of the past 20 years.

The snobs’ bank, Coutts, closed his account because it said “his views do not align with our values”.

Then it lied through its teeth about why it had closed his account.

Luckily, a dossier compiled by Coutts, and now made public by Mr Farage, makes it very clear.

The cretinous, woke, authoritarians at the bank objected to Farage’s friendship with Donald Trump and Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic, who missed tournaments because he was not vaccinated against Covid.

They didn’t like his views on LGBTQ+ rights, either.

And they added, in what is surely a libellous accusation: “He is seen as xenophobic and racist.

"He is considered by many to be a disingenuous grifter.”

Gawd — banks accusing someone of being a grifter! What an obnoxious organisation.

How I hope it goes bust and they all lose their jobs.

Incidentally, it is owned by NatWest Group, which is part owned by us, the taxpayer.

Coutts has been condemned by politicians on both sides of the House of Commons.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said: “This is wrong. No one should be barred from using basic services for their political views.

"Free speech is the cornerstone of our democracy.”

Indeed. So what you do now, Rishi, is demand that Coutts offers a grovelling apology to Farage and re-opens his account. And if it doesn’t, close the bank.

This story originally broke a couple of weeks ago.

The lefties were united in saying “nah, it’s not true.

"They probably closed his account down for perfectly good financial reasons.”

Well, now we know the truth. So a bit of humble pie wouldn’t come amiss for those who were anxious to disbelieve the story for political reasons.

Farage isn’t the only one who has had his account closed because of his beliefs.

A Scottish blogger suffered the same fate.

The offspring of Tory peers have also been refused banking services because the bosses didn’t like the opinions of their fathers!

Speak their mind

So beware — if you have suggested anywhere online that perhaps we have a few too many immigrants and the country can’t cope, or that someone who has got a large todger and a beard is probably a bloke — watch yourself.

The shameful truth is that this has been coming for a long while.

The woke Left has got more and more strident about banning and cancelling people who disagree with its idiotic opinions.

And they lobby big businesses to make sure they don’t associate themselves with people who speak their mind.

University lecturers are kicked out of campuses.

Feminist heroines such as Germaine Greer and Kathleen Stock are banned from speaking.

And all the while the lefties insist that none of this is happening. We’re imagining it all.

Come on NatWest. Big companies have to have the guts to stand up to this odious totalitarianism.

Remember that old cliché “it’s a free country”? Nope, not any more it isn’t.

MUM’S UTTER MISERY

WE should all show our sympathy for Zoe Coles.

The Lincolnshire mum of two woke up six weeks ago talking in a strong Welsh accent, despite not being Welsh or indeed ever having visited Wales.

The accent will not go away, so we can only imagine the depths of her misery, look you.

Zoe has a rare condition called Functional Neurological Disorder and is trying to find a neurologist who might expunge from her brain this intrusion.

A neurologist friend of mine is not hopeful: “All people with neurological disorders end up speaking in a Welsh accent.

"It kind of goes with the job. Just take a trip over the Severn Bridge and you’ll see what I mean.”

Next week I will give you the hate crime reference number for this article, once Plaid Cymru has reported it to the police.

AGES DON’T ADD UP

THE Scottish National Party is proposing to increase the age of criminal responsibility from 12 to 18.

That means someone who is 17 cannot be held responsible for a crime he or she commits.

They dream up some weird stuff north of the border. Some say it is because they are all out of their boxes on pies and heroin.

But I can see the point to this proposal.

Scientists reckon that 25 is the age when a person’s brain is fully developed and capable of making wise decisions.

But if that is correct – and I suspect it is – why are the Scots letting 16-year-olds vote in their Parliamentary elections.

WAR ON RIGHTS BY LEFT

I’VE mentioned before how our civil servants are at war with the Government.

They are also at war with anyone who doesn’t sign up to their left-liberal agenda.

Lady Falkner is the boss of the Equalities and Human Rights Commission, and doing a decent job.

But she is accused of being too sane on the issue of transgenderism – and her civil servants want her out.

So they have bombarded her with complaints about her behaviour – and an investigation is underway.

They will not cease until everyone employed agrees precisely with them.

SWEAR THAT’S UNFAIR

THE approach the courts took to Husina Hussain seemed to me ever so slightly lenient.

The Muslim woman went berserk in a bowling alley in Manchester.

She was well and truly mullered, so to speak.

She attacked the bowling alley manager.

And then, when the coppers came to arrest her, she attacked them too.

And called them “f***ing whites!”

The court let her off jail and just bunged her some community service.

They also agreed not to fit her with an ankle tag.

That’s because she said it would interfere with the Muslim cleansing ritual, Wudhu.

Hmmm. I’m not sure what Allah thinks about being rat-ad in an infidel bowling alley, but there we are.

But can you imagine if it was a white lass and she’d shouted out: “F***ing blacks!” Or “F***ing Muslims”?

Do you think the same generosity would have been applied?

MORE evidence is emerging of the propaganda being forced into the heads of schoolchildren.

And the sheer, gob-smacking intolerance of the teachers when the pupils dare to challenge their idiocies.

Year eight pupil Jacob Lascelles claims he was told he would be thrown out of the classroom if he continued to challenge a teacher who allegedly said veganism was the best way to save the planet.

Veganism is the best way to have bad breath and a hip operation. But save the planet?

Well done to Jacob for resisting this tyranny.

TIME FOR A PROPER AUSSIE KICKING, LADS . . 

THE fourth Ashes Test is underway – and the Aussies are still whingeing and griping about what happened in the SECOND one.

They are claiming that they were kicked by members of the MCC at Lord’s cricket ground after Jonny Bairstow’s disgraceful stumping.

Not kicked anywhere near hard enough, IMO. Just give it a rest you antipodean crybabies.