How can the arts embrace freedom of expression?

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This debate is part of Battle of Ideas North 2026.

For more than 20 years, the arts have pushed their own version of ‘inclusive politics’, sometimes even employing exclusionary tactics. But some worry that a combination of activist pressure and institutional takeover by a partisan cultural establishment is proving hostile to genuine free expression.

Whether it is authors and publishing professionals cancelled for their gender-critical views, gallery gatekeepers pushing ideological agendas such as decolonisation or environmentalism, or the banishing of Jewish comedians or certain bands at festivals, the incentives to experiment – never mind actively break taboos – now seem in short supply.

Is it unavoidable that art’s role as a form of rebellious social commentary – shaped by changing generations, economic trends and cultural tastes – will always encourage political uniformity? Or is it possible for a range of perspectives, including apolitical ones, to genuinely flourish?