Actor turned political party leader Laurence Fox claims being “woke” is “anti-British”, and has vowed to oppose it for the “rest of his days.”
Speaking on the Chopping Politics podcast, Mr Fox, discussed a recent poll that found half of Brits believe they are less free to say what they think today than five years ago due to “cancel culture”.
“If 50 per cent of the country don’t feel like they’re free to speak, there’s a huge problem. I was pretty startled that it’s half of the population,” he said.
“But I also have to say that in another way, one part of me expected it.
Mr Fox, whose political party Reclaim was approved by the Electoral Commission last week, added that there is a lot wrong with “being woke”.
The word “woke” refers generally to left wing politics and an awareness of racial or social discrimination but is also used as an insult by those who feel unable to speak their minds.
Mr Fox also claims that full debates can’t take place due to people not being able to “speak their minds freely.”
In the interview, the 42-year-old also discussed debates around the UK’s colonial history, with the actor stating that people “do not want their history rewritten.”
“This is a tolerant and loving country, he said. “It aspires to be and is what it is and it’s what it wants to continue to be.
“And these people who walk around telling us that we’re all massive racists all the time – we need a right to reply to them. That’s what my belief is. I think it’s in the interest of democracy that everyone speaks freely.”
He added: “I exist to give them a remedy out of it, a way out of it and, you know, give them some immunity to the virus of what wokery is in your mind.
“It’s a sense that you’re superior. And somehow there is an answer. And it’s very anti-British. It’s very nation-hating. And I stand in direct opposition to it. And I will be for the rest of my days.”
Mr Fox founded the Reclaim party in 2020 in a bid to “fight the culture-wars”.
In a statement announcing the launch on Twitter, he said his party would "change everything... with love, reason and understanding".
A Westminister source once told the Telegraph that the group is “basically a Ukip for culture”.
Mr Fox sparked controversy after appearing on BBC Question Time in January last year, where he said the media treatment of the Duchess of Sussex was not racist, saying such allegations were “boring”.
He added that it was “racist” for an audience member to refer to him as a “white privileged male”.
