‘Greens use rhetorical violence to silence critics’
Battle Talk: Dominic Lawson, former editor of the Sunday Telegraph, on free speech, environmentalism and the death of ideology.

Want to read spiked ad-free? Become a spiked supporter.
spiked is the online sponsor of the Battle of Ideas, a two-day festival of debate taking place in London on 27 and 28 October. In the run-up to the festival, spiked‘s editor Brendan O’Neill is carrying out ‘taster interviews’ with some of the speakers at the Battle for the online TV channel 18 Doughty Street.
In the second interview – or ‘Battle Talk’ – he spoke to Dominic Lawson, a columnist with the Independent and a former editor of both the Spectator and the Sunday Telegraph, about how environmentalism has filled the gap left by the death of ideology, and why greens will brook no criticism of their creed.
WHO FUNDS SPIKED? YOU DO
We are funded by you. And in this era of cancel culture and advertiser boycotts, we rely on your donations more than ever. Seventy per cent of our revenue comes from our readers’ donations – the vast majority giving just £5 per month. If you make a regular donation – of £5 a month or £50 a year – you can become a {{supporters}}, and enjoy:
–Ad-free reading
–Exclusive events
–Access to our comments section
It’s the best way to keep spiked going – and growing. Thank you!
Comments
Want to join the conversation?
Only spiked supporters and patrons, who donate regularly to us, can comment on our articles.