Rejoice!
Friday, July 31, 2020 at 18:07 
Thrilled to hear that Claire Fox (above) has been awarded a peerage.
Best news I’ve heard for a long, long time.
For the uninitiated, Claire is director of the Academy of Ideas, founder of the annual Battle of Ideas Festival, a former member of the Revolutionary Communist Party and, more recently, a Brexit party MEP.
She’s been a great friend to Forest and has spoken at numerous Forest events in London, Dublin and Brussels, including our 40th anniversary dinner last year.
More important, Claire is one of the few people in this country who not only believes in free speech but actively defends it.
A regular panellist on Radio 4’s The Moral Maze until she was elected to the European Parliament in 2019, she is one of the few guests on programmes such as Any Questions, Newsnight or Politics Live who can genuinely be described as independent (even when she was an MEP).
Claire’s biggest achievement, in my view, is not only being one of the most principled people I know (and, no, I don’t agree with her on everything) but on raising the tone of the debate whenever she speaks, whether it be a keynote address or a panel discussion.
Yes, she will argue her corner forcefully and with considerable passion, but as long as I have known her (20 years) she always listens to - and usually respects - the other side.
I wish we had more peers like Claire Fox because there should be no room for party political nonsense in the House of Lords.
If I had more time I’d also pay tribute to her remarkable courage, but that’s another matter. For the moment I couldn’t be more pleased.
PS. By complete coincidence - because I only heard the news of her peerage this afternoon - I asked Claire yesterday to be a guest speaker on the next Forest webinar, on Monday 10th August.
She agreed and by a quirk of fate she will be joined by another baroness for what should be an absorbing discussion.
Full details on Monday!!
Reader Comments (5)
Rejoice indeed!
She is one of my favourite left wing advocates.
Congratulations to Claire. X
I do not doff my ageing cap to many people. Too old. Too cynical. But Miss Fox has always been a breath of fresh air wherever she appears. Her common sense on The Moral Maze puts most others to shame. I am not a fan of 'gongs' but if we have to give one I cannot think of a more well deserved recipient.
I wasn't really aware of Claire Fox - even though I am a long-standing FOREST supporter - as I've never been to an event yet, so I just watched her speech above now, and I have to say that I was very impressed with her. I say that, even as someone who is on the opposite side to her on Europe. As she said, we should all respect each other and our diverse choices. I think she will make a very good peer, and we definitely need more people like Claire, fighting for our freedom in the corridors of power.
Great news, we need more like her in the HoL, and everywhere else, for that matter!