A Christian teacher who lost his job at Preston College after sharing comments online has spoken publicly about his experience at a free speech conference hosted by Reform UK.
Simon Pearson, who had taught for two decades without incident, was dismissed after the college received complaints about several posts he made on social media in August 2024. The posts questioned what he described as “two-tier policing” in the UK and compared the legal treatment of different online offenders.
One of Pearson’s posts criticised violent language directed towards Muslims following the Southport murders but also claimed that similar or worse comments from others were not prosecuted. He cited the case of Labour councillor Ricky Jones, who had urged violence against “Nazi fascists” but was later acquitted, alongside that of Lucy Connolly, who was jailed for inflammatory remarks about migrants despite deleting her post soon after.
The controversy began when the Islamic representative of the National Education Union (NEU) at Preston College lodged a complaint, describing Pearson’s remarks as “Islamophobic” and “racially discriminatory.” The complaint followed another of his posts that referred to a violent altercation at Manchester Airport involving a Muslim man and police officers.
Pearson was subsequently dismissed after the complainant threatened to report the matter to police and the media. During disciplinary proceedings, Pearson apologised for any offence caused and highlighted his previous record of supporting Muslim students.
He is now being supported by the Christian Legal Centre, which is pursuing a claim of wrongful dismissal on his behalf.
Speaking at the Reform UK conference, Pearson said his case illustrated the growing risks to free expression in Britain. “I stand before you not as a teacher, but as someone who has been unjustly dismissed for expressing concern about violent crime and the erosion of free speech and justice in our country,” he said.
Drawing on his past experience working as a missionary in a communist country, he added, “I know what it means to live under a regime where truth is suppressed and conscience is punished. I never imagined facing similar pressures in the United Kingdom, a nation founded on liberty, justice and Christian values.”
Pearson urged those attending the conference to explore the Christian faith, describing it as the moral and cultural foundation of Britain.
Andrea Williams, chief executive of the Christian Legal Centre, said, “We stand firmly with Mr Pearson because no one should lose their livelihood for expressing lawfully protected beliefs. His case shows the growing intolerance towards Christian convictions when they challenge dominant secular ideologies.”
A spokesperson for the NEU stated that Preston College’s management made the decision to dismiss Pearson after following internal procedures. “The NEU was not directly involved,” they said, adding that the fairness of the decision would be determined by an employment tribunal if the case proceeds.
Adapted from Christian Today UK.
