Academic has talk to civil servants cancelled by government
On Ada Lovelace Day, when women working in STEM are encouraged to share and celebrate their achievements, the government chose to remove the opportunity for Dr. Kate Devlin to speak to civil servants.
Earlier this week, Dr. Kate Devlin, Reader in Artificial Intelligence & Society at Kings College, London, and author, posted a series of tweets about how she had been treated by a government department which had asked her to give a talk about women working in STEM. The talk was to take place yesterday - Ada Lovelace Day, when the achievements of women such as Dr Devlin are shared and celebrated, with the aim of showing younger women and girls the many possibilities of a career in STEM. The talk provided an opportunity to raise awareness of the gender imbalance in computer science and its implications.
Dr. Devlin was advised that prior to the talk going ahead that the government department in question would exercise due diligence on her social media. However, last week Devlin was emailed to inform her that the Ministry had withdrawn the invitation because she had previously been critical of government policy on her social media channels, and that speakers who had any historic social media content which was negative of the government in any way would not be allowed to speak.
Dr. Devlin is a board member of Open Rights Group which campaigns for privacy and free speech online. Writing on Twitter, she stated that she was openly critical of some government policies, particularly the Online Safety Bill in its present form. She also added that her criticism was not confined to the present administration.
The irony of a major government department no platforming an academic because that academic has expressed views it dislikes is difficult to overstate. The brainchild of former Secretary of State for Education Sir Gavin Williamson, the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Bill is currently at the Committee stage in the House of Lords, and seeks to protect freedom of speech and academic freedoms on university campuses.
Dr. Devlin's experience is not unique. The Daily Telegraph received a leaked memo from the Cabinet Office last year which stated that employee networks within the civil service must make and record checks on external speakers opinions. The memo stated that:
"We recognise that it is not always clear to determine whether an activity is deemed political or if an individual has spoken against key government policies.
"This is why all cross-government networks must carry out due diligence checks on all speakers invited to events, and the content of any events and communications to ensure impartiality."
Computing contacted the relevant ministry for an up-to-date comment and was answered with the following guidance:
"Departments and cross-government networks are required to carry out due diligence to ensure sessions are fit for purpose, offer value for taxpayers' money and are in line with Civil Service rules.
"The Civil Service Code requires political impartiality and this necessarily restricts some activity, compared to the general public."
The cancellation of Dr. Devlin's talk based on views unrelated to the subject that she had been asked to talk about, raises the question of exactly whose speech and whose freedoms the government purports to protect. It was also a wasted opportunity to educate policymakers about the gender gap in technology, as Dr. Devlin herself said to Computing:
"There is still a problem with diversity in computer science. Civil service employee networks do a great job to raise awareness of the obstacles faced by underrepresented groups. My talk was to highlight the gender gap and related issues in artificial intelligence, both algorithmically and in the workplace. This is an area where the government could make a great difference."
Employee networks have a valuable part to play supporting and advocating for under-represented groups, and government policy could have a powerful role to play in helping to address some of these inequalities. The problem is that it involves hearing difficult truths and protecting the freedom of speech of those who tell us what we do not wish to hear.
On Ada Lovelace Day, the government chose not to listen to a woman who continues to excel in her field. It chose instead to try to silence her.
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