A statement in response to Andreas Malm being denied entry into the United Kingdom

Verso Books is shocked and disturbed by the Labour government’s decision to ban one of our leading authors, Andreas Malm, from entering the United Kingdom. Never in over 55 years of publishing has a British government revoked the right of one of our authors to enter the country. Malm is a leading world authority on climate change and has been recognised as such by his peers. Andreas Malm’s books have won international awards, galvanised countless people to take action for environmental justice and Palestinian rights, and inspired a major Hollywood film. He travels regularly to Britain to lecture at universities including Oxford, King’s College London and Cambridge. The notion that his presence ‘harms the public good’ is farcical. It is the Home Office’s outrageous act of political censorship that harms the public good, as many MPs know only too well. 

We can only assume, since no reasons have been given for banning him, that it is Andreas’s positions on Palestine, no different from the ICC and UN commissions, is the cause. Only a weak and cowardly government seeks to curb dissent in this fashion. No previous government – Conservative, Labour or New Labour – has assaulted the right to free speech and thought in this fashion. On occasion they have banned books, but not authors.

Verso Books condemns the silencing of critical voices and stands in support of writers and scholars who continue to speak out about important issues and contribute to open intellectual discourse. We urge the government to restore Andreas Malm's electronic travel authorisation immediately and allow him entry into the country.

Tariq Ali
Chair, Verso Board of Directors