UK revokes travel permit for Finnish MP over contested hate-speech conviction

The United Kingdom’s Home Office rescinded the electronic travel authorisation it had issued to Finnish MP Paivi Rasanen and Lutheran Bishop Juhana Pohjola, invoking their recent convictions for “hate speech” by the Finnish Supreme Court over a pamphlet titled “Male and Female He Created Them.” The revocation, announced in early July, bars Rasanen from attending a scheduled speech before the Northern Ireland Assembly and forced her to use a Zoom link after the ban took effect.

Alliance Defending Freedom, representing the duo, argues the action contravenes free-speech protections and has urged Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood to restore the permit. Rasanen, who previously received entry permission on June 17, also faced a cancelled layover at London’s Heathrow Airport. Both individuals are appealing the Finnish rulings to the European Court of Human Rights. The case has drawn comments from U.S. officials and human-rights observers, highlighting tensions over Europe’s hate-speech laws and religious expression.