Battle at the Barbican

I'm working tomorrow.

Along with 350 other speakers I'm taking part in the Battle of Ideas, "two days of high-level, thought-provoking, public debate organised by the Institute of Ideas at the Barbican".

I'm involved in a 90-minute session chaired by Josie Appleton, director of the Manifesto Club. The other panellists are Guy Herbert (general secretary, NO2ID) and Anton Howes (director, Liberty League). It's called Campaigning for Freedom and it starts at 3.30pm.

These are some of the questions we will be addressing:

• What are the possibilities and limitations for freedom campaigners today? Is it a repressive or libertarian moment?

• Are lifestyle freedom issues as important as classic civil liberties campaigns?

• Are we seeing a 'new totalitarianism'? How do the threats to freedom differ to previous eras?

• How have campaigning methods changed? How has new media changed campaigning - and for the better or worse?

Feel free to comment here and I will raise the best points.

Also taking part (on Sunday at 5.00pm) is Chris Snowdon on the subject 'Drink, smoke, eat: prohibition today'.

Another familiar name is Mark Littlewood ('Risk, regulation and red tape').

Other speakers include Timandra Harkness and Rob Lyons who took part in Forest's Liberty Lounge event at the Conservative conference in Birmingham last week.

Look hard and you'll also find several contributors to The Free Society including Suzy Dean, Rania Hafez, Patrick Hayes, Dr Stuart Waiton and Professor Dennis Hayes.

Click here for the full list of speakers. Click here for information about tickets.

Update: Dick Puddlecote is going. See Something for the weekend.