Andreas Malm Denied Entry to the UK to Speak at Tribune Event

Andreas Malm, the prominent Swedish climate scholar, has been denied entry into the UK, Tribune can reveal. 

Malm was notified by the Home Office this week that his Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) had been cancelled. 

The reason stated was that his ‘presence in the UK is not considered to be conducive to the public good’.

ETAs are used by nationals in Europe, Australia, Canada and a number of other countries to enter the UK without the need for a visa. 

Malm had been set to travel to London to speak at the launch event for Tribune’s latest issue, titled ‘Empire Now’.

He was also due to attend an academic conference and appear on the BBC.

‘I am deeply dismayed at this sudden ban on travelling to the UK’, Malm told Tribune.

‘I have been going to the UK for decades — this is where I did my archival research for my PhD dissertation and lectured at dozens of universities and participated in even more conferences.

‘I have always considered the UK a centre of the world of ideas, where differences in opinions and scientific approaches can be aired freely.’

He added that being prevented from speaking on a panel and appearing on the BBC was ‘nothing short of scandalous’. 

The Swedish academic, well-known for his activism and writings on environmental justice and Palestinian rights, among other topics, has won several major international awards. 

His book How to Blow Up a Pipeline: Learning to Fight in a World on Fire, was adapted into a Hollywood action thriller.

In his essay for Tribune’s latest issue, Malm argues that an ‘ultra-fossil empire’ is being spearheaded by Donald Trump’s administration, combining the forces of war, fascism and climate breakdown.

The justification used by the Home Office to ban Malm was the same as that given to American commentators Hasan Piker and Cenk Uygur in June this year. 

They similarly had their ETAs cancelled by the Labour government, then led by Keir Starmer.

Now, under Andy Burnham, the barring of leftist figures appears to be continuing.

‘One was under the impression that the Burnham government had slightly more respect for the basic notions of freedom of expression and other democratic rights,’ Malm said. 

Tribune has contacted the Home Office for comment. 

Malm has been told by UK authorities that with his ETA cancelled, he must now apply for a standard visitor, transit or temporary work visa. 

However, lawyers told Tribune that there was no chance of such visas being granted, and that the ETA cancellation had effectively banned him from entry. 

Jeremy Corbyn, the former leader of the Labour Party, called the move ‘absurd and outrageous’. 

‘We know why the government has taken this decision: because it wants to silence criticism of Israel, as well as its own complicity in genocide. It will not succeed,’ he said. 

The former Green finance minister Yanis Varoufakis said: ‘Andy Burnham’s admirers like to think of him as the cuddly antidote to Keir Starmer’s stone cold managerialism. This decision shows otherwise. When it comes to silencing those who stand up against the genocide of Palestinians, the new Prime Minister is just as authoritarian and just as callous as the man he replaced. Only the smile is different. Lift the ban. 

Let Andreas Malm speak. And let Tribune hold its launch without the state deciding who may address it.’

George Monbiot, a Guardian columnist, called it ‘a disgraceful attempt by the British government to suppress free speech’. Adam Tooze, a bestselling author and professor of history at Columbia University, denounced it as ‘a shameful decision to deny one of the leading minds of our era and one of the most eloquent voices, a platform in the UK.’

Tribune’s launch event will go ahead as planned on Wednesday November 4th, with Malm addressing the crowd by video and a range of other speakers addressing the UK’s rapid descent into authoritarianism.