Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006
Encyclopedia
The Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006 (c. 1) is an Act
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
which creates an offence in England and Wales
of inciting hatred against a person on the grounds of their religion. The Act was the Labour
Government's third attempt to bring in this offence: provisions were originally included as part of the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Bill in 2001, but were dropped after objections from the House of Lords
. The measure was again brought forward as part of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Bill in 2004-5, but was again dropped in order to get the body of that Bill passed before the 2005 general election
.
The Act is notable because two amendments made in the House of Lords failed to be overturned by the Government in the House of Commons
.
Most of the Act came into force on 1 October 2007.
of 11 September 2001, the Government in Britain brought forward the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Bill. Clause 38 of that Bill would have had the effect of amending Part 3 of the Public Order Act 1986
to extend the existing provisions on incitement to racial hatred to cover incitement to religious hatred. When the Bill reached the House of Lords, an amendment to remove the clause was passed by 240 votes to 141. The Commons reinstated the clause, but the Lords again removed it. Finally, the then Home Secretary
, David Blunkett
, accepted that the Commons had to accede to the Lords' insistence that the clause be left out of the Bill.
On 8 January 2002, a Private Member's Bill
was brought before the House of Lords by Lord Avebury
, who sought in his Religious Offences Bill to amend the Public Order Act 1986 to include religious hatred offences, in exactly the same manner as the Government's 2001 Bill. Although the reaction to the Bill itself was not favourable, the House did appoint a Select Committee to look into the whole law relating to religious offences, including the possibility of repealing the law relating to blasphemy
. There were no specific recommendations from the Committee, and in a debate on its conclusions on 22 April 2004, the Government confirmed that it intended to press ahead with the creation of an incitement to religious hatred offence.
The Government brought the proposal back before Parliament in the Serious Organised Crime and Police Bill in the Session leading up to the general election in May 2005. During the Lords debate on the relevant section of the Bill, on 5 April 2005 (the day on which the general election was called), the provision was removed. When the Bill returned to the Commons on 7 April, the Government announced that it was dropping the measure so as to secure the passage of the Bill as a whole before the Dissolution
of Parliament.
At the general election, the Labour Party confirmed that, were it to be re-elected, it would bring in a Bill to outlaw incitement to religious hatred: "It remains our firm intention to give people of all faiths the same protection against incitement to hatred on the basis of their religion. We will legislate to outlaw it and will continue the dialogue we have started with faith groups from all backgrounds about how best to balance protection, tolerance and free speech" (Labour Party manifesto, 'Forward not back' (2005), p111-112).
Critics of the Bill (before the amendments noted below, adding the requirement for the intention of stirring up hatred) claimed that the Act would make major religious works such as the Bible
and the Qur'an
illegal in their current form in the UK. Comedians and satirists also feared prosecution for their work. While sympathising with those who promoted the legislation, in particular British Muslims, actor and comedian Rowan Atkinson
said: "I appreciate that this measure is an attempt to provide comfort and protection to them but unfortunately it is a wholly inappropriate response far more likely to promote tension between communities than tolerance." Leaders of major religions and race groups, as well as non-religious groups such as the National Secular Society
and English PEN
spoke out against the Bill.
Supporters of the Bill responded that all UK legislation has to be interpreted in the light of the Human Rights Act 1998
, which guarantees freedom of religion and expression, and so denied that an Act of Parliament is capable of making any religious text illegal.
The House of Lords
passed amendments to the Bill on 25 October 2005 which have the effect of limiting the legislation to "A person who uses threatening words or behaviour, or displays any written material which is threatening... if he intends thereby to stir up religious hatred". This removed the abusive and insulting concept, and required the intention - and not just the possibility - of stirring up religious hatred.
The Government attempted to overturn these changes, but lost the House of Commons votes on 31 January 2006.
A complete summary of the voting in the various divisions of this bill may be found at www.publicwhip.org.uk.
Act of Parliament
An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
which creates an offence in England and Wales
England and Wales
England and Wales is a jurisdiction within the United Kingdom. It consists of England and Wales, two of the four countries of the United Kingdom...
of inciting hatred against a person on the grounds of their religion. The Act was the Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
Government's third attempt to bring in this offence: provisions were originally included as part of the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Bill in 2001, but were dropped after objections from the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
. The measure was again brought forward as part of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Bill in 2004-5, but was again dropped in order to get the body of that Bill passed before the 2005 general election
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....
.
The Act is notable because two amendments made in the House of Lords failed to be overturned by the Government in the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
.
Most of the Act came into force on 1 October 2007.
Previous attempts at legislation
After the terrorist attacksSeptember 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
of 11 September 2001, the Government in Britain brought forward the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Bill. Clause 38 of that Bill would have had the effect of amending Part 3 of the Public Order Act 1986
Public Order Act 1986
The Public Order Act 1986 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It creates a number of public order offences. They replace similar common law offences and parts of the Public Order Act 1936...
to extend the existing provisions on incitement to racial hatred to cover incitement to religious hatred. When the Bill reached the House of Lords, an amendment to remove the clause was passed by 240 votes to 141. The Commons reinstated the clause, but the Lords again removed it. Finally, the then Home Secretary
Home Secretary
The Secretary of State for the Home Department, commonly known as the Home Secretary, is the minister in charge of the Home Office of the United Kingdom, and one of the country's four Great Offices of State...
, David Blunkett
David Blunkett
David Blunkett is a British Labour Party politician and the Member of Parliament for Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough, having represented Sheffield Brightside from 1987 to 2010...
, accepted that the Commons had to accede to the Lords' insistence that the clause be left out of the Bill.
On 8 January 2002, a Private Member's Bill
Private Member's Bill
A member of parliament’s legislative motion, called a private member's bill or a member's bill in some parliaments, is a proposed law introduced by a member of a legislature. In most countries with a parliamentary system, most bills are proposed by the government, not by individual members of the...
was brought before the House of Lords by Lord Avebury
Eric Lubbock, 4th Baron Avebury
Eric Reginald Lubbock, 4th Baron Avebury, PC is an English politician. A Liberal Member of Parliament from 1962 to 1970, he succeeded as Baron Avebury in 1971...
, who sought in his Religious Offences Bill to amend the Public Order Act 1986 to include religious hatred offences, in exactly the same manner as the Government's 2001 Bill. Although the reaction to the Bill itself was not favourable, the House did appoint a Select Committee to look into the whole law relating to religious offences, including the possibility of repealing the law relating to blasphemy
Blasphemy
Blasphemy is irreverence towards religious or holy persons or things. Some countries have laws to punish blasphemy, while others have laws to give recourse to those who are offended by blasphemy...
. There were no specific recommendations from the Committee, and in a debate on its conclusions on 22 April 2004, the Government confirmed that it intended to press ahead with the creation of an incitement to religious hatred offence.
The Government brought the proposal back before Parliament in the Serious Organised Crime and Police Bill in the Session leading up to the general election in May 2005. During the Lords debate on the relevant section of the Bill, on 5 April 2005 (the day on which the general election was called), the provision was removed. When the Bill returned to the Commons on 7 April, the Government announced that it was dropping the measure so as to secure the passage of the Bill as a whole before the Dissolution
Dissolution of parliament
In parliamentary systems, a dissolution of parliament is the dispersal of a legislature at the call of an election.Usually there is a maximum length of a legislature, and a dissolution must happen before the maximum time...
of Parliament.
At the general election, the Labour Party confirmed that, were it to be re-elected, it would bring in a Bill to outlaw incitement to religious hatred: "It remains our firm intention to give people of all faiths the same protection against incitement to hatred on the basis of their religion. We will legislate to outlaw it and will continue the dialogue we have started with faith groups from all backgrounds about how best to balance protection, tolerance and free speech" (Labour Party manifesto, 'Forward not back' (2005), p111-112).
Controversy
The bill contains wording to amend the Public Order Act 1986:- Section 29A
- Meaning of "religious hatred"
- In this Part "religious hatred" means hatred against a group of persons defined by reference to religious belief or lack of religious belief.
- Meaning of "religious hatred"
- Section 29B:
- (1) A person who uses threatening words or behaviour, or displays any written material which is threatening, is guilty of an offence if he intends thereby to stir up religious hatred.
Critics of the Bill (before the amendments noted below, adding the requirement for the intention of stirring up hatred) claimed that the Act would make major religious works such as the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
and the Qur'an
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
illegal in their current form in the UK. Comedians and satirists also feared prosecution for their work. While sympathising with those who promoted the legislation, in particular British Muslims, actor and comedian Rowan Atkinson
Rowan Atkinson
Rowan Sebastian Atkinson is a British actor, comedian, and screenwriter. He is most famous for his work on the satirical sketch comedy show Not The Nine O'Clock News, and the sitcoms Blackadder, Mr. Bean and The Thin Blue Line...
said: "I appreciate that this measure is an attempt to provide comfort and protection to them but unfortunately it is a wholly inappropriate response far more likely to promote tension between communities than tolerance." Leaders of major religions and race groups, as well as non-religious groups such as the National Secular Society
National Secular Society
The National Secular Society is a British campaigning organisation that promotes secularism and the separation of church and state. It holds that no-one should gain advantage or disadvantage because of their religion or lack of religion. It was founded by Charles Bradlaugh in 1866...
and English PEN
International PEN
PEN International , the worldwide association of writers, was founded in London in 1921 to promote friendship and intellectual co-operation among writers everywhere....
spoke out against the Bill.
Supporters of the Bill responded that all UK legislation has to be interpreted in the light of the Human Rights Act 1998
Human Rights Act 1998
The Human Rights Act 1998 is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom which received Royal Assent on 9 November 1998, and mostly came into force on 2 October 2000. Its aim is to "give further effect" in UK law to the rights contained in the European Convention on Human Rights...
, which guarantees freedom of religion and expression, and so denied that an Act of Parliament is capable of making any religious text illegal.
The House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
passed amendments to the Bill on 25 October 2005 which have the effect of limiting the legislation to "A person who uses threatening words or behaviour, or displays any written material which is threatening... if he intends thereby to stir up religious hatred". This removed the abusive and insulting concept, and required the intention - and not just the possibility - of stirring up religious hatred.
The Government attempted to overturn these changes, but lost the House of Commons votes on 31 January 2006.
History
- 11 July 2005 - The bill was passed by the House of CommonsBritish House of CommonsThe House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
and was passed up to the House of LordsHouse of LordsThe House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
. - 11 October 2005 - The bill was read by the House of Lords as a 300-strong group of protesters demonstrated in Hyde ParkHyde Park, LondonHyde Park is one of the largest parks in central London, United Kingdom, and one of the Royal Parks of London, famous for its Speakers' Corner.The park is divided in two by the Serpentine...
. Forty-seven Lords spoke in the debate, of whom nine came out in support of the bill. - 31 January 2006 - The Commons supported an amendment from the House of Lords by 288 to 278, contrary to the position of the Government. A second Lords amendment was approved by 283 votes to 282 in the absence of Prime MinisterPrime Minister of the United KingdomThe Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
Tony BlairTony BlairAnthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
, who had apparently underestimated support for the amendment. This made the bill the Labour government's second defeat since the 2005 election. The Tories' strategy to win the vote was inspired by the episode "A Good Day" of the American television series The West WingThe West Wing (TV series)The West Wing is an American television serial drama created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999 to May 14, 2006...
. - 16 February 2006 - The Bill received Royal AssentRoyal AssentThe granting of royal assent refers to the method by which any constitutional monarch formally approves and promulgates an act of his or her nation's parliament, thus making it a law...
to become the Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006 c. 1. - 1 October 2007 - The act came partially into force with the publication of a Statutory InstrumentStatutory InstrumentA Statutory Instrument is the principal form in which delegated or secondary legislation is made in Great Britain.Statutory Instruments are governed by the Statutory Instruments Act 1946. They replaced Statutory Rules and Orders, made under the Rules Publication Act 1893, in 1948.Most delegated...
. Remaining provisions awaiting commencement are the insertion of sections 29B(3), 29H(2), 29I(2)(b) and 29I(4) into the Public Order Act 1986:
A complete summary of the voting in the various divisions of this bill may be found at www.publicwhip.org.uk.
See also
- Censorship in the United KingdomCensorship in the United KingdomCensorship in the United Kingdom has a long history with variously stringent and lax laws in place at different times. Censorship of motion pictures, video games and Internet sites hosted in the United Kingdom are considered to be among the strictest in the European Union, the strictest being...
- Freedom of speechFreedom of speechFreedom of speech is the freedom to speak freely without censorship. The term freedom of expression is sometimes used synonymously, but includes any act of seeking, receiving and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used...
- IncitementIncitementIn English criminal law, incitement was an anticipatory common law offence and was the act of persuading, encouraging, instigating, pressuring, or threatening so as to cause another to commit a crime....
- Public Order Act 1986Public Order Act 1986The Public Order Act 1986 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It creates a number of public order offences. They replace similar common law offences and parts of the Public Order Act 1936...
External links
- The Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006, as amended from the National Archives.
- The Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006, as originally enacted from the National Archives.
- Explanatory notes to the Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006.
- Hansard - Text of House of Commons Standing Committee discussion of the Bill
- Public Order Act, amended to reflect the proposed changes of the bill
- Racial and Religious Hatred Bill (BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
News Bill Tracker) - politics.co.uk news roundup
- Q&A: Religious hatred law (BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
News, 9 June 2005) - New effort to ban religious hate (BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
News, 11 June 2005) - Blackadder's revenge hits the hate bill (The Sunday TimesThe Sunday Times (UK)The Sunday Times is a Sunday broadsheet newspaper, distributed in the United Kingdom. The Sunday Times is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News International, which is in turn owned by News Corporation. Times Newspapers also owns The Times, but the two papers were founded...
, 9 October 2005 - Protest over religious hate (BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
News, 11 October 2005) - Christian group may seek ban on Qur'an (The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, 12 October 2005)