ANTI-WAR PROTESTORS NOT FREE TO SPEAK OUT

A council was accused last night of putting a price on freedom of expression over plans to bill demonstrators for a protest during a visit to Scotland by Tony Blair.
Highland Council has infuriated anti-war groups by threatening to charge them for any road closures caused by their protest during the prime minister's visit to Inverness.
The Highland Coalition for Justice Not War and its parent body, the Scottish Coalition, said billing protesters for the march and rally near the Scottish Labour Party conference in the city later this month would set a worrying precedent and could damage freedom of speech.
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Scottish Socialist Party spokesman Steve Arnott said the charge threatened to undermine democratic rights.
"This would be the first time any group has been charged in this way," he said.
"When we raised this with Highland Council, they said they didn't have a contingency fund to cover this kind of thing.
"We suggested they establish a fund because, if people want to exercise their democratic right and carry out a peaceful protest, the council should accommodate that." Press and Journal