Hate Crime Act has united Scots against the SNP
by Iain Macwhirter, The Times:
Yousaf’s ill-conceived legislation seems to have fomented a generalised revolt against laws that penalise free speech.
After only one week, and 8,000 hate reports, the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act is almost universally derided as a legislative disaster. Not only is it profoundly unpopular and probably unenforceable, it’s brought the pre-existing hate laws into disrepute and public obloquy. Quite an achievement.
Few Scots had ever heard of the Orwellian concept of “non-crime hate incidents”. Even fewer were fully aware that people were being tagged without their knowledge for having perpetrated one of these crimes-that-are-not-crimes, and that they could be revealed in background searches.
Academics and some police spokespeople have resorted to ingenious sophistry in the past week in their efforts to deny that this practice exists, or that names are recorded. Yet, Disclosure Scotland, the government agency that “makes sure unsuitable people do not work with vulnerable people” is on record as saying that “non-conviction matters” including hate incidents can indeed appear in background checks for people applying for certain public sector jobs, like teaching. The police have confirmed this too. Non-crime hate incidents (NCHIs) can be revealed as “relevant information” in enhanced disclosure checks. Cynics say this may explain why the public sector seems to be filled with bien pensant clones.
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