Terms & Conditions

1. About Us and This Agreement

1.1 Seriously Opinionated Ltd ("we", "us", "our", "the Company") is a company registered in England and Wales. We operate the website at www.seriouslyopinionated.com (the "Platform") as a venue for serious political debate, verified opinion, and democratic discourse.

1.2 These Terms and Conditions ("Terms") constitute a legally binding agreement between you ("User", "you", "your") and Seriously Opinionated Ltd governing your access to and use of the Platform, including any content, functionality, and services offered.

1.3 By accessing the Platform, creating an account, submitting content, or participating in polls or discussions, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by these Terms and all applicable laws and regulations.

1.4 If you do not agree to these Terms, you must not create an account or submit any content to the Platform. Non-registered users may read published content on the Platform without agreeing to these Terms, but may not participate in any interactive features.

2. Eligibility and Registration

2.1 You must be at least 18 years of age to create a verified account on the Platform. By registering, you confirm that you meet this age requirement.

2.2 You must be capable of entering into a legally binding contract under the laws of England and Wales, or of your country of residence if different.

2.3 Each individual may only hold one verified account. Creating multiple accounts is prohibited and may result in permanent suspension of all associated accounts.

2.4 Registration for a verified account requires the submission of identity verification documents as specified in Section 3 below. We reserve the right to refuse or revoke registration at our sole discretion.

3. Identity Verification

3.1 Mandatory Identity Verification. All registered members are required to verify their identity before participating in interactive features of the Platform. Verification requires submission of:

• A valid UK passport or UK driving licence (full or provisional), or equivalent government-issued photographic identity document;
• A recent photograph of the account holder (taken within the preceding 3 months);
• Confirmation of your full legal name and date of birth; and
• A valid email address.

3.2 Purpose of Verification. Identity verification serves the following purposes:

• To ensure accountability in public political discourse;
• To prevent the creation of multiple accounts, bot activity, and coordinated inauthentic behaviour;
• To enable legal disclosure of user identities where required by law; and
• To maintain the editorial integrity and reputational standing of the Platform.

3.3 Public Display. Only your chosen public display name will be visible to other users of the Platform. Your full legal name, date of birth, address, and identity documents will not be disclosed to any third party except as set out in Section 4 below.

3.4 Accuracy. You warrant that all information provided during registration and verification is accurate, complete, and up to date. You must notify us promptly of any changes to your personal information.

3.5 Verification Review. We reserve the right to reverify user identities at any time and to suspend accounts pending satisfactory reverification.

4. Disclosure of User Identity to Authorities

4.1 Legal Compulsion. We will disclose your identity, account information, content, and associated data (including but not limited to your full legal name, date of birth, address, identity documents, IP addresses, and activity logs) to any competent authority where we are legally required to do so, including:

• Any court, tribunal, or judicial body of any jurisdiction;
• Any police force, law enforcement agency, or prosecuting authority;
• Any government department, regulatory body, or intelligence service;
• Any parliamentary committee or public inquiry;
• Any authority exercising functions of a judicial or quasi-judicial nature; and
• Any international body, including the International Criminal Court, where the UK is under an obligation to cooperate.

4.2 Voluntary Cooperation. In addition to legal compulsion, we may proactively disclose user information to UK law enforcement or intelligence authorities where we have reasonable grounds to believe that disclosure is necessary to:

• Prevent or detect a serious crime;
• Protect national security;
• Prevent serious harm to any individual; or
• Assist in the investigation of terrorism, incitement to violence, or hate crime.

4.3 No Notification. We are not required to, and in many cases will be legally prohibited from, notifying you before or after making disclosures required by law or judicial order. The existence of a disclosure obligation may itself be confidential.

4.4 Jurisdiction. The disclosure obligations in this Section apply globally. We will comply with lawful requests from any jurisdiction, including foreign courts and law enforcement agencies, subject to the requirements of English law and our legal obligations regarding cross-border data transfers.

4.5 Indemnity. By creating an account, you agree that Seriously Opinionated Ltd shall not be liable to you for any loss, damage, or reputational harm arising from any lawful disclosure of your identity made pursuant to this Section.

5. Content Standards and Submission

5.1 All content submitted to the Platform — including essays, comments, and poll responses — must comply with the following standards. Content must:

• Be original work authored solely by you;
• Be accurate to the best of your knowledge and belief, with sources cited where appropriate;
• Be argued in good faith and be genuinely intended to contribute to political debate;
• Comply with all applicable laws, including but not limited to the laws of defamation, contempt of court, official secrecy, and data protection; and
• Not constitute hate speech, incitement to violence, harassment, or discrimination on any protected characteristic.

5.2 Content must not:

• Be defamatory, malicious, or knowingly false;
• Disclose confidential information or trade secrets;
• Infringe any intellectual property rights;
• Constitute advertising or commercial promotion;
• Contain personal information about any third party without their consent;
• Constitute contempt of court or prejudice any ongoing legal proceedings; or
• Be obscene, threatening, or abusive.

5.3 Editorial Review. All essay submissions are subject to editorial review before publication. We reserve the right to decline, edit, or withdraw any content at our absolute discretion. Editorial decisions are final and we are under no obligation to explain or justify them.

5.4 Licence. By submitting content to the Platform, you grant Seriously Opinionated Ltd a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence to publish, reproduce, distribute, and archive that content on the Platform and in related publications. You retain all other intellectual property rights in your content.

5.5 Moral Rights. You waive any moral rights in submitted content to the extent necessary to allow us to exercise the licence granted in Section 5.4, including the right to make reasonable editorial amendments.

6. Subscription and Access

6.1 All published essays, poll results, and editorial content on the Platform may be read by any visitor, including non-registered users, without charge.

6.2 The following features are available only to verified registered members: submitting essays for editorial consideration; posting comments on published essays; participating in polls; and accessing extended reader analytics.

6.3 We reserve the right to introduce subscription tiers or premium features at any time. We will provide at least 30 days' notice to registered members of any change that materially affects their access rights.

7. Data Protection and GDPR

7.1 We are committed to processing your personal data lawfully, fairly, and transparently in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

7.2 Our full Privacy Policy, which forms part of these Terms, sets out in detail: what personal data we collect; the legal basis for processing; how long we retain data; your rights as a data subject; and how to exercise those rights.

7.3 Identity verification documents (passports, driving licences, photographs) are stored separately from profile data, encrypted at rest, and accessible only to authorised personnel for verification and legal compliance purposes. They are not used for any other purpose.

7.4 We are registered with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) as a data controller. If you have concerns about how we handle your personal data, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the ICO at www.ico.org.uk.

8. Intellectual Property

8.1 The Platform, including its design, software, editorial structure, branding, and all original content produced by Seriously Opinionated Ltd, is protected by copyright and other intellectual property laws. All rights are reserved.

8.2 The Seriously Opinionated name, logo, and associated marks are trade marks of Seriously Opinionated Ltd. You may not use them without our prior written consent.

8.3 You may share links to published content and quote brief extracts (not exceeding 200 words) for the purposes of commentary, criticism, or news reporting, provided you attribute the source clearly.

9. Limitation of Liability

9.1 The Platform and all content published on it are provided on an "as is" basis. We make no representations or warranties of any kind regarding the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of any content published by third-party contributors.

9.2 To the fullest extent permitted by law, Seriously Opinionated Ltd shall not be liable for any indirect, consequential, special, or punitive damages arising from your use of the Platform or reliance on any content published on it.

9.3 Our total aggregate liability to you in respect of any claim arising under these Terms shall not exceed the amount paid by you to us in the 12 months preceding the claim (or £100 if no amount has been paid).

9.4 Nothing in these Terms limits our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or any other liability that cannot lawfully be excluded.

10. Termination

10.1 We may suspend or terminate your account at any time if you breach these Terms, if we are required to do so by law, or if we decide to discontinue the Platform.

10.2 You may close your account at any time by contacting us at legal@seriouslyopinionated.com. Account closure does not delete previously published content, which may be retained in accordance with our Privacy Policy and archiving obligations.

10.3 On termination, your licence to access the Platform ceases immediately. Sections 4, 5.4, 7, 8, 9, and 11 survive termination.

11. Governing Law and Dispute Resolution

11.1 These Terms, and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with them, shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the law of England and Wales.

11.2 Any dispute arising under these Terms shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales, save that we reserve the right to bring proceedings against you in the courts of any jurisdiction in which you are resident.

11.3 If any provision of these Terms is held to be invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions shall continue in full force and effect.

12. Changes to These Terms

12.1 We reserve the right to amend these Terms at any time. We will notify registered members of material changes by email and by posting a notice on the Platform at least 14 days before the changes take effect.

12.2 Your continued use of the Platform after changes take effect constitutes your acceptance of the revised Terms. If you do not accept the revised Terms, you must close your account.

13. Contact

If you have any questions about these Terms, please contact us:

Seriously Opinionated Ltd · These Terms were last revised on 11 April 2026 · Version 1.0
Note: These Terms should be reviewed by a qualified solicitor before the Platform goes live. This document is a comprehensive template and should be confirmed as legally compliant with current UK law by a legal professional.