Scot Govt’s hate crime Bill could criminalise people for ‘misspeaking’

Jul 27, 2020 by

from Christian Institute:

The SNP’s hate crime Bill will drag people through the courts for ‘misspeaking’, a top lawyer has warned.

The Scottish Government’s Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Bill intends to criminalise ‘stirring up hatred’ against people on the basis of certain ‘protected characteristics’, including religion, sexuality and transgender identity.

Thomas Ross QC accused the Scottish Government of failing to define offences included in the proposed Bill.

Ross said: “If the Scottish Government is going to create an offence that can be committed unintentionally, drafters of the legislation have to make the essentials of the offence crystal clear. They’ve failed to do that.”

“The language used in the Bill is so difficult to understand that it will be impossible for the man or woman in the street to know when the line is likely to be crossed.”

He concluded: “As a result a lot of interesting debate simply will never take place”.

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