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[Text on screen]: Freedom of expression. Article 10 of the Human Rights Act.

Everyone has the right to express their views and opinions. We can do this in private or public, without government interference.

What does the Human Rights Act officially say?

“Everyone has right to freedom of expression.”

But what exactly does it mean?

Basically, we can express our views and opinions in a number of ways, including:

-Through books or leaflets.
-On television os radio broadcasting.
-Through works of art.
-On the internet or social media.

 Article 10 also ensures our right to receive information from other people too, such as being part of an audience or watching an informative film. It even means we can express our opinions despite them being unpopular or causing offence to others

But there are some exceptions.

We have a duty to respect others’ rights and act responsibly with the freedom of expression. Our right to Article 10 can be limited in some circumstances. Such as if those views express and encourage racial or religious hatred.

Here are three key examples of what it does for us:

1. Offensive speech and text is protected. (Handyside case, 1976)
2. The press can report freely on public interest issues. (Sunday Times case, 1989)
3. Protects journalists from being forced to reveal their sources. (Goodwin case, 1996)

Our right to expression is valuable. But we must ensure those views don’t harm other people’s rights.

Learn more about your rights at www.eachother.org.uk
Media, Speech

The right to freedom of expression explained in 2 minutes!

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Published on 22 Feb 2022

This video is about Article 10 of the Human Rights Act (HRA) which protects our right to freedom of expression. The right to freedom of expression means we can hold and publicly express our opinions, in addition to receiving information from other people.

This video is part of a wider series showcasing the protections the HRA provides us and why they are so important in our daily lives. We’ve also curated a week of written content surrounding the proposed reform of the HRA so that you can stay informed and up to date on the latest developments.

The Human Rights Act is central to ensuring we can all live a safe and secure life. It sets out a range of principles that the government, and public bodies, must follow and uphold for all of us. If they fail to follow them, we have the ability to take our case to a UK court and, if our rights have been violated, we may be fairly compensated. The Human Rights Act has given us the ability to stand up to those in power.

But the Human Rights Act is under threat.

The government has announced plans to reform the HRA into a new British Bill of Rights, which lawyers and campaigners are concerned will shift more power in favour of the government, and weaken the protections we have available to us. We need to ensure that human rights are accessible and available for everyone, but we may risk losing those protections if the government’s reform comes into effect.

Want to learn more? Head on over to our spotlight page to read more about the proposals to the HRA.You can find more videos in this HRA series on our Youtube playlist.

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