Swedish climate academic Andreas Malm barred from entering UK
Malm, author of How to Blow Up a Pipeline, was told his presence 'may not be considered to be conducive to the public good' before a Tribune event with Palestine Action's co-founder.
At a glance
- Swedish climate academic Andreas Malm has been barred from entering the UK before a planned speaking event.
- Immigration officials said his presence "may not be considered to be conducive to the public good".
- Malm was due to appear at a Tribune conference with Palestine Action co-founder Huda Ammori.
Andreas Malm, the Swedish climate academic and author of How to Blow Up a Pipeline, has been barred from entering the UK, where he was due to speak at a conference organised by Tribune magazine alongside a co-founder of the banned group Palestine Action.
Malm, an associate professor of human ecology at Lund University in Sweden, said immigration officials told him his presence in the UK "may not be considered to be conducive to the public good". He described the decision as "scandalous" and urged the government to reconsider.
"I am deeply dismayed at this sudden ban on travelling to the UK," Malm said. "I have been going to the UK for decades – this is where I did my archival research for my PhD dissertation and lectured at dozens of universities and participated in even more conferences."
He added: "One was under the impression that the Burnham government had slightly more respect for the basic notions of freedom of expression and other democratic rights. I appeal for this decision to be overturned." The Home Office said it did not discuss individual cases.
Conference and court challenge
The Tribune event was billed under the theme "Washington's global reign of terror and Britain's role in reinforcing it". Malm was expected to appear with Huda Ammori, a co-founder of Palestine Action, to discuss the impact of the group's ban, including its effect on the author Sally Rooney, who has withdrawn her books from sale in the UK over her support for the group.
The event was timed to coincide with the start of a supreme court challenge to the ban next Wednesday. While in London, Malm was also due to be interviewed for BBC Radio 4's Radical With Gabriel Gatehouse programme.
Reaction
Rooney called the ban "a sad and frightening act of cultural self-harm", describing Malm as "among the most brilliant and influential intellectuals working in Europe today" and saying that denying him entry was "an outrageous attack on a respected climate expert".
Tribune's editor, Oliver Eagleton, said Malm had been due to speak about "the unprecedented attacks on free speech unleashed by the proscription of Palestine Action". "He is being censored for speaking out about censorship, in truly Orwellian fashion," Eagleton said, adding that it was "shameful" the government was continuing "the authoritarian overreach we saw under Keir Starmer".
Earlier this year, the US leftwing commentators Cenk Uygur and Hasan Piker were also barred from the UK on the same grounds.
Malm's books have won international awards, and How to Blow Up a Pipeline inspired a film of the same name. He has lectured at universities including Oxford, King's College London and Cambridge.
Source: The Guardian World.
Questions and answers
- Why was Andreas Malm barred from entering the UK?
- Immigration officials told Malm his presence in the UK "may not be considered to be conducive to the public good", the same grounds used to bar two US commentators earlier this year. The Home Office said it does not discuss individual cases.
- What event was Andreas Malm due to attend in the UK?
- He was due to headline a Tribune magazine conference on "Washington's global reign of terror and Britain's role in reinforcing it" with Huda Ammori, co-founder of the banned group Palestine Action, and to be interviewed for BBC Radio 4.
- What has been the reaction to the decision?
- Author Sally Rooney called it "a sad and frightening act of cultural self-harm". Tribune editor Oliver Eagleton said Malm was being "censored for speaking out about censorship", while Malm himself called the ban "scandalous".
