A coalition of opponents to Britain’s controversial plans to tackle extremist preachers has formed into a campaign group to defeat what it views as an assault on free speech.

As David Cameron’s government presses ahead with the introduction of Extremism Disruption Orders (EDOs), under which it can effectively silence community leaders, including preachers for communicating ‘unacceptable’ messages, The Defend Free Speech group launched at Westminster, bringing together an unlikely alliance of religious and secular groupings, together with one of Britain’s most well-known gay rights campaigners, Peter Thatchell.

According to Simon Calvert, whose Christian Institute has joined the group, EDOs stand as a “badly conceived” plan which, ultimately, will be bad for society.

“The complete absence of safeguards and any clear definition of what is deemed to be extreme will have a chilling effect on free speech and campaigners,” Mr Calvert warned.

Acknowledging that Defend Free Speech is “Britain’s most unlikely campaign group”, Mr Calvert stressed that the members “are united in our belief that free speech is a vital civil liberty and must be protected”.

In light of a recent surge in radicalisation among members of Britain’s Muslim community, Prime Minister David Cameron unveiled EDOs towards countering this, describing Britain’s previously tolerant attitude as “a failed approach”.

However, opponents were quick to point out that the legislation around EDOs fails to fully clarify what can be considered ‘extreme’, posing a threat to religious leaders who might wish to communicate deeply held beliefs which might be at odds with secular society, such as, for example, opposition to same-sex marriage.

In early October, some 50 Christian leaders signed an open letter to Mr Cameron, warning that the legislation “to tackle ‘extremism in all its forms’ casts the net so wide that almost anyone could fall into it”.