The conviction of Patriotic Alternative activist Sam Melia is an outrageous affront to liberty.

Far-right activist Sam Melia may not be a remotely sympathetic figure. But his conviction in Leeds Crown Court last week should leave any supporter of free speech seriously concerned.

Melia was the Yorkshire organiser for far-right group Patriotic Alternative. Three years ago, he was also running an online library of far-right stickers. The stickers were available to download for anyone who was interested. They bore crass slogans like ‘Labour loves Muslim rape gangs’, ‘We will be a minority in our homeland by 2066’ and ‘Mass immigration is white genocide’. These stickers ended up being printed and posted by people across the globe.