Free speech does not exist in the UK or EU. At most there are vague free opinion laws with many grey areas that boil down to "keep them to yourself" if you like to keep your door hinged.
I'm sorry to say but that's ignorant bullshit. Freedom, not only of speech, but of expression and information, is enshrined in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, the major legal document of the EU; whence I quote:
Article 11 - Freedom of expression and information
1. Everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right shall include freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public authority and regardless of frontiers.
2. The freedom and pluralism of the media shall be respected.
The link above clarifies that this article corresponds to article 10 of the European Convention of Human Rights (a legal document of the Council of Europe, a different body than the EU, whose members are a strict subset of the members of the CoE). Article 10 delimits restrictions to the right of expression, as follows:
2. The exercise of these freedoms, since it carries with it duties and responsibilities, may be subject to such formalities, conditions, restrictions or penalties as are prescribed by law and are necessary in a democratic society, in the interests of national security, territorial integrity or public safety, for the prevention of disorder or crime, for the protection of health or morals, for the protection of the reputation or rights of others, for preventing the disclosure of information received in confidence, or for maintaining the authority and impartiality of the judiciary."
And as the article points out, those restrictions apply to article 11 freedoms also, acting as an upper bound:
Pursuant to Article 52(3) of the Charter, the meaning and scope of this right are the same as those guaranteed by the ECHR. The limitations which may be imposed on it may therefore not exceed those provided for in Article 10(2) of the Convention, without prejudice to any restrictions which Community competition law may impose on Member States' right to introduce the licensing arrangements referred to in the third sentence of Article 10(1) of the ECHR.
In other words, yes, there is freedom of "speech", a.k.a expression, in the EU and it, and its limits, are enshrined in law.
I hate to make assumptions but there are a few public figures from the US that have argued that "Europe" has no freedom of speech like the brave US, like Paul Graham and Elon Musk, but they're talking out of their backsides.
Let's see how much those EU charter papers are worth when you get arrested for a tweet, which happens a lot.
Vague Hate speech laws alone can utterly remove any of those "human rights". In Germany and the UK people get charged for jokes or sarcastically criticizing politicians all the time. That is not free speech or even free expression regardless how much you want to cope to own musk or whoever the news told you to hate this week.
People get arrested for tweets like calling for the homes of asylum seekers to be set on fire. Something like this, clear and direct calls for violence and criminal acts, usually turn up when you research any of those cases brought as examples for censorship in the EU or UK.
There is a difference between the EU and the UK: the UK is no longer a signatory to the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. On the other hand, it is still a signatory to the European Convention of Human Rights, but of course there has been a sustained, concerted effort to exit it, disparage it as "a villain's chapter" etc, at least since I've been in the country (2005).
The environment in the EU and the UK is also very different in terms of freedom of speech. In the UK for example I've kept tabs on people being put in jail for completely ludicrous reasons, like a kid who was accused of planning a Sandy Hook - like attack because he had a backpack with batteries, stones and ziplocks in it, and a young woman who was put in jail for writing poetry, with themes interpreted as terrorist sympathy. Unfortunately my bookmarks are on my other computer and I can't access them now and a search online only brings up more current cases that I don't know much about because I haven't looked into them yet, so I'll have to ask you to just have to believe me about that.
On the other hand you can find plenty of information about Drill music used as evidence in criminal trials, which is also a form of criminalisation of expression that should be banned under both the EU and CoE laws:
Then again there is the appalling treatment of climate activists and anti-war protesters in the UK, like for example the recent proscription of Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation and the arrest of hundreds of its supporters that followed. But I believe that protesting e.g. the carnage in Palestine is not treated much better in Germany or France.
The important thing to keep in mind however is that all of that is the result of authorities overstepping bounds and claiming for themselves powers that they don't have, which happens in such freedom of speech-loving countries like the US even more often. The fact of the matter is that the law of the land protects freedom of expression and we do not live in some dystopian dictatorship where you're bundled up if you so much as dare to make a squeak about the government, or the authorities.
Using a banned ad to claim otherwise is simply disingenuous.
It's too bad I can't block users who think offending their interlocutor is a form of debate on HN. I do not "cope" and I don't give a shit about Musk, he's the one who has faithful followers who parrot his ignorant bullshit on social media, which btw I do not follow. Don't sound like him and I won't wonder whether that's what you're doing.
