Theresa May’s speech on terrorism and extremism – full text and audio

Our values will prevail in the fight against terrorism and extremism

Thank you, Alexander, for that thoughtful and inspiring speech.

It’s difficult for most of us here in this hall to really appreciate the effects of stop and search. You see, most of us are white. Most of us are of a certain age. Well, we’re certainly not teenagers anymore. But imagine walking home, or driving to work one day, and being stopped by the police. Imagine, having done nothing wrong, you are patted down, you have your pockets turned inside out, and your possessions examined. Imagine you ask why you’re being searched and you’re told it’s “just routine” even though the police need “reasonable grounds for suspicion” that you’ve broken the law.