Back to drawing board for Home Office

Government plans to outlaw incitement religious hatred have suffered a crushing defeat in the house of Lords, to the joy of protesters who saw it as  curb on freedom of speech and the right to make religious jokes.

The proposed Racial and Religious Hatred Bill will now be torn up after peers voted 260 to 111 to reject the legislation.

Its replacement will have much more limited scope and include more safeguards on free speech.

Lord Hunt, opening the debate during the Bill’s committee stage, summed up the feelings of campaigners by saying: ‘You cannot promote tolerance by limiting freedom of expression. Tolerance and freedom of expression buttress one another. They are inseparable siblings. This Bill just goes too far, far too far.’

Rowan Atkinson had led the chorus of protest, and last week suggested an amendment that prosecutors would have to prove intent to stir up hatred, rather than simply being abusive or offensive,

 Although Home Secretary Charles Clarke will now have to amend he law, these proposals are unlikely to be adopted as they would make it almost impossible to secure a conviction.

Atkinson believes high-profile comedians such as himself were unlikely to be pursued by the planned law, in the same way existing race legislation has been brought against the likes of Bernard Manning or Jim Davidson.

But he believes the legislation would ‘intimidate’ people into not speaking freely.

Published: 26 Oct 2005