You are here: Home » News »

Students urge Burnham to shun Cambridge Union after Le Pen visit

February 19, 2013 4:46 pm

Tags:

Share this Article

The Cambridge Universities Labour Club will be writing to shadow health secretary Andy Burnham urging him to withdraw from speaking in a Cambridge Union Society debate, in response to the society’s hosting of the French neo-fascist leader Marine Le Pen at an event today. The club urged its members to join a demonstration outside the prestigious debating society from this afternoon, to assert that “racism and fascism has no place in Cambridge”.

The Front National has already boasted on its website of the prestige of the Cambridge Union.

Andy Burnham – an alumnus of Cambridge’s Fitzwilliam College – is honorary President of the Labour Club, and they have urged him to pull out of an upcoming debate (entitled “This house believes that New Labour ruined Britain”).

We spoke to Burnham’s office this afternoon, who told us that no decision has yet been made on the shadow health secretary’s appearance at the Cambridge Union.

 

Related posts:

  1. Andy Burnham – the runaway winner of our MP of the month contest
  2. Bravo Andy Burnham
  3. Burnham does the double – he’s your MP of the month (and your favourite shadow cabinet member)
  4. Why I’m backing Andy Burnham for leader
  5. The race in review: Andy Burnham
  • John Reid

    I recall Bernie grant, Ken Livingstone, Tony benn and Denis healey all getting heckled or threatening letters during the 87 election, In Hornchurch one of the heckles was An Unknown tory called eric Pickles, I’m sure the tories felt what Labour stood for was offensive to them, but to encourage censorship Is wrong, unless it can proved what that person is saying incites hatred or violence,

  • Dave Postles

    Ah yes, Oxbridge Unions – their members have always suffered from an excess of motions.

  • JoeDM

    Whatever happened to freedom of speech?

    • Alexwilliamz

      I don’t think you should be asking questions like that!

    • Brumanuensis

      Cambridge Union are free to invite Marine Le Pen. Cambridge Universities Labour Club are free to call for a boycott of the Union and the demonstrators are free to demonstrate outside. All of these things are an exercise of freedom of speech. Freedom of speech does not mean ‘you can do and say what you like without other people taking exception to what you say and do’.

    • Brumanuensis

      Cambridge Union are free to invite Marine Le Pen. Cambridge Universities Labour Club are free to call for a boycott of the Union and the demonstrators are free to demonstrate outside. All of these things are an exercise of freedom of speech. Freedom of speech does not mean ‘you can do and say what you like without other people taking exception to what you say and do’.

    • Brumanuensis

      Cambridge Union are free to invite Marine Le Pen. Cambridge Universities Labour Club are free to call for a boycott of the Union and the demonstrators are free to demonstrate outside. All of these things are an exercise of freedom of speech. Freedom of speech does not mean ‘you can do and say what you like without other people taking exception to what you say and do’.

  • Chilbaldi

    1. Wait… Cambridge has a union too? How come I’ve never heard of it before?

    2. Who cares what a student debating society does?

    3. Presumably Burnham shouldn’t speak in Parliament either, given that fascists have previously spoken there?

  • http://twitter.com/220_d_92_20 David Boothroyd

    Cambridge University Labour Club’s predecessor, Cambridge Organisation of Labour Students, used to have a policy of boycotting the Cambridge Union entirely. I remember voting to overturn it in about 1993. If I remember right the reason for the boycott was because the Cambridge Union membership fee was unaffordably high, and the Cambridge Union didn’t do enough to distinguish itself from the Cambridge University Students Union.

  • Brumanuensis

    I’m generally ambivalent about no platform policies. On the one hand I don’t think they do much to stop the spread of fascism, given that the audience targeted by fascist parties rarely frequent Student Unions. On the other hand, the glib ‘if we debate them, we’ll expose their shortcomings’ doesn’t hold much water either. Richard Dawkins generally refuses to debate with creationists, for the very sound reason that he won’t persuade them and by debating them, he can only make them look more credible. So on balance, Burnham should boycott.

    • Hugh

      He’s not being asked to share a platform or debate them. He’s being urged to boycott speaking in the same venue because it will have hosted Le Pen. On this principle he’ll also have to boycott the Oxford union, and any union or organization that’s ever given a platform to anyone from the far right – presumably hardline islamists and such too.

      Of course, the threat that Andy Burnham won’t agree to attend their venue at a later date might make organisers nation-wide pause before they invite such controversial figures in future and thus serve some purpose. However, I wouldn’t want to bet on it.

      • Brumanuensis

        I wasn’t specifically commenting about Burnham, more making a general point about no platform policies and their merits (limited, in my view).

        “On this principle he’ll also have to boycott the Oxford union, and any union or organization that’s ever given a platform to anyone from the far right – presumably hardline islamists and such too”.

        Fair enough.

      • Brumanuensis

        I wasn’t specifically commenting about Burnham, more making a general point about no platform policies and their merits (limited, in my view).

        “On this principle he’ll also have to boycott the Oxford union, and any union or organization that’s ever given a platform to anyone from the far right – presumably hardline islamists and such too”.

        Fair enough.

    • Hugh

      He’s not being asked to share a platform or debate them. He’s being urged to boycott speaking in the same venue because it will have hosted Le Pen. On this principle he’ll also have to boycott the Oxford union, and any union or organization that’s ever given a platform to anyone from the far right – presumably hardline islamists and such too.

      Of course, the threat that Andy Burnham won’t agree to attend their venue at a later date might make organisers nation-wide pause before they invite such controversial figures in future and thus serve some purpose. However, I wouldn’t want to bet on it.

  • KonradBaxter

    No platform is a foolish policy that achieves nothing.

    Let them speak, let them make fools of themselves, let them be exposed.

    The BNP hardly did well out of their Question Time appearance did they?

  • LordElpus

    If it’s okay to ban someone from the far right from speaking then surely it’s okay to ban someone from the far left.

  • markfergusonuk

    The Cambridge Union / CUSU thing was still a problem when I was a student 10 years ago too

Latest

  • News Ed Miliband statement on Woolwich murder

    Ed Miliband statement on Woolwich murder

    In a statement this evening, Ed Miliband said: “This is a truly appalling murder which will shock the entire country. “All of my thoughts are with the family and friends of the victim. “The British people will be horrified by what has happened in Woolwich. They will be united in believing that this terror on our streets cannot be allowed to stand. “The Labour Party will offer the Government our complete support in establishing the facts of what happened and [...]

    Read more →
  • News Equal marriage – How every Labour MP voted at every stage of the bill

    Equal marriage – How every Labour MP voted at every stage of the bill

    By Kirstin Hay

    With much jubilation, the 3rd reading of the same-sex marriage bill passed the House of Commons last night, carried through on the weight of Labour votes, but how have individual MPs voted on this bill? In the 2nd reading of the equal marriage bill, Labour MP voting totals were: 217 – for 22 – against 14 – non-voters For the third reading 192 – for 14 – against 49 – non-voters —————————————————————- 192 Labour MPs who voted yes on 3rd reading (9 didn’t [...]

    Read more →
  • News Ed Miliband’s Google Speech – full text

    Ed Miliband’s Google Speech – full text

    Speaking at the Google Big Tent event Ed Miliband said (please note, Miliband spoke without notes, but this is the text released by the party): It is great to be here inside the Google Big Tent. My sons Daniel and Sam think I do a very boring job, so they will be excited when I tell them I appeared along with the “Killer Robots” and the “Captain of the Moonshots” at your sessions. I’d like to start by showing you [...]

    Read more →
  • Comment Unions The chutzpah of Peter Mandelson – and why we need more trade unionists

    The chutzpah of Peter Mandelson – and why we need more trade unionists

    By Mark Seddon

    Lord Mandelson, or Baron Mandelson of Foy, as he should be referred to since he was packed off to the House of Lords by a small cabal, recently accused the Unite union of ‘manipulating selection procedures’ in the Labour Party. He went on to warn Ed Miliband that this ‘stores up danger for a future Labour government’. Irony has always been in as short supply as sheer chutzpah has been plentiful with old Mandy – but since his faithful disciple [...]

    Read more →
  • News Cameron says no more EU-turns – Media roundup: May 22nd, 2013

    Cameron says no more EU-turns – Media roundup: May 22nd, 2013

    Subscribers to our morning email get the best of LabourList – including the Media and blog round up – every weekday morning. If you were a subscriber you would have already received this in your inbox. You can sign up here. Cameron says no more EU-turns “After one of his most difficult weeks since becoming prime minister, David Cameron put in a polished and assured peformance on the Today programme this morning. The most notable line came on Europe, with Cameron [...]

    Read more →