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The author of the clause cited the support of Peter Tatchell, Liberty, Matthew Parris and Rowan Atkinson
Parliament
'Free speech' clause to homophobic hatred offence stays in
The government conceded defeat today over yesterday's House of Lords vote in favour of a 'free speech' clause to the offence of homophobic hatred. The amendment, to part of the coroners and justice bill, was rejected by the Commons for the fourth time on Monday night with a vote of 342 to 145, but the Lords once again passed it, with a vote of 179 to 135.
A Ministry of Justice spokeswoman said: "As this parliamentary session ends today we can no longer delay the passage of this bill." She said the government was "very disappointed" by the Lords vote, adding: "There is no doubt about the threshold of this offence. No 'freedom of expression' section is needed to explain it. The threshold is a high one. The offence only covers words or behaviour that are threatening and intended to stir up hatred."
The law against inciting homophobic hatred would now be brought into force "as quickly as possible", she said, and the government would return to the issue in future "should it prove necessary to do so in the light of experience".
Lord Waddington's amendment read: "For the avoidance of doubt, the discussion or criticism of sexual conduct or practises or the urging of persons to refrain from or modify such conduct or practises shall not be taken of itself to be threatening or intended to stir up hatred."
In letters to the Guardian and the Times, Lord Waddington had cited the support of Peter Tatchell, human rights group Liberty, the Church of England, gay political sketch writer and ex-Tory MP Matthew Parris, and Rowan Atkinson, who addressed a meeting at the Lords in March with his concern that a "culture of censoriousness" would be created by removing the free speech clause.
In a letter to the Guardian, Lord Waddington wrote: "I tabled the amendment not to water down the offence, but to make sure it does just what it was intended to do - criminalise incitement to hatred, and no more," and referred to the "blockbuster of a free speech protection" contained in the parallel offence of inciting religious hatred.
In the Lords last night, he said: "If we are to finish up with a free speech clause in the religious hatred offence but no free speech clause here, we're simply asking for trouble."
He said there was no "dispute" about the need for laws outlawing incitement to hatred on grounds of sexual orientation. "The question is what conceivable benefit will accrue from the repeal of a safeguard for free speech...without waiting to see whether in practise it interferes in any way with proper enforcement of the law."
However, Labour peer Lord Smith warned that a free speech clause could lead to more anti-gay attacks. "There is already a huge amount of anxiety and fear among the gay community about the increasing level of attacks," he said.
"If the signal that the house sends is that it is all right to be intolerant, I fear that we will end up seeing more violence and more attacks and more difficulty for people simply because of their sexual orientation.
"If this house stands up for free speech, as it so often has to, on this particular matter, it is at risk of sending the wrong signal to the wrong people outside."
