ABSTRACT
Freedom of expression is a key area in the protection of human rights element of constitutional law courses. Examiners tend to set general essays in this area; the emphasis is usually on the degree to which a balance is struck between freedom of expression and a variety of other interests. It is now essential in your answers to take the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) into account, especially Art 10, which provides a guarantee of freedom of expression. The Convention was received into UK law when the Human Rights Act 1998 (HRA) came fully into force in October 2000. Until that time, Art 10 and other Convention Articles relevant in this area were not directly applicable in UK courts, but the judiciary referred to the Convention more and more in resolving ambiguity in statutes in the run-up to the inception of the HRA. The HRA has now been in force for over eight years and a number of significant cases in the field of freedom of expression (such as Prolife Alliance (2003), Ashworth (2002), Interbrew SA v Financial Times Ltd (2002), Punch (2003) and Shayler (2002)) have been decided under the HRA. Whether any particular case is relevant will depend of course on the essay title.
