Extract from Scottish Parliament Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3 - Mar 10
Thursday, 11 March 2021 07:41
The Cabinet Secretary for Justice (Humza Yousaf):...The effect of
the proposed defence in amendment 5 and the behaviour that it seeks
to exclude from the scope of the stirring up hatred offences is
therefore, potentially, far reaching. It appears to me that
amendment 5 would mean that if a large group of people were invited
to meet in a private space for the purpose of stirring up hatred
against a group—for example, Catholics attending their local parish
church or Jewish people attending...Request free trial
The Cabinet Secretary for Justice ():...The effect of the proposed
defence in amendment 5 and the behaviour that it seeks to exclude
from the scope of the stirring up hatred offences is therefore,
potentially, far reaching. It appears to me that amendment 5 would
mean that if a large group of people were invited to meet in a
private space for the purpose of stirring up hatred against a
group—for example, Catholics attending their local parish church or
Jewish people attending their local
synagogue—and words or materials were exchanged during that meeting
that were threatening or abusive and intended to stir up hatred,
and were seen or heard only by people within that private space, no
“public element” would have occurred and no offence of stirring up
hatred would have been committed...
...I will speak to amendment 1 and all the other amendments
in the group, but I would not
mind addressing Neil Findlay’s point first—and I am happy for him
to come back in an intervention. He said that he has spoken to
victims of hate crime and that they do not want the bill. I have no
idea who on earth he has talked to. BEMIS, which is one of the
national racial equality organisations, sent round a letter that
said that it supports the bill, and 20 organisations signed up to
that. The Muslim Council of Scotland, the Scottish Council
of Jewish Communities, the Humanist
Society Scotland, Scottish Women’s Aid, Victim Support
Scotland...
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