Sussex anti-racist groups say they will not be gagged by Parliament
Anti-racist campaigners have warned an MP they will not be gagged.
Charities claim spending limits proposed in the Lobbying Bill, which is currently passing through Parliament, will restrict their work.
To show their concern, members of anti-racism group Hope Not Hate door-stepped Hove MP Mike Weatherley at his constituency office in Church Road, Hove.
Mark Drayton, of the group, said: “What began as a bid to clean up politics and make the process more transparent has ended up as an attempt to restrict people and individuals engaging in politics and exercising their democratic rights of free speech.
“Simply put, this bill could gag us in the run-up to the next General Election and prevent us offering a proper challenge to racism and fascism.”
Mr Weatherley abstained on the controversial part two of the vote when it was discussed in Parliament last week.
Despite the first stage of the bill being passed, ministers yesterday admitted the public outcry against the “gagging” effect on charities had forced them into a U-turn.
A Reform Party candidate fantasised about deporting “millions” of British citizens to “rid itself of the foreign plague we have been diseased with”. UPDATE: Reform…
