Incitement to Hatred on the Grounds of Sexual Orientation Vote
Unexpectedly, the free speech amendment to clause 73 of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill is likely to be voted on in the House of Lords on Monday night, 21st April.
If
you have any personal contact with any Peers please call them to ask
them to be present in the House of Lords if
possible.
Please
pray that peers can be contacted and even at this late notice they
come in from far and wide for the vote and that the Waddington
amendment is successful.
If left unchanged, clause 73 would create an offence of incitement to hatred on the grounds of sexual orientation without any free speech provision. This could produce a chilling effect on free speech, as it would appear that any criticism of homosexual behaviour could be construed as ‘inciting hatred’. The amendment tabled by Lord Waddington and others seeks to make it clear on the face of the Bill that discussion or criticism of homosexual conduct will not be seen as intending to stir up hatred.
The amendment reads:
“In this Part, for the avoidance of doubt, the discussion or criticism of sexual conduct or practices or the urging of persons to refrain from or modify such conduct or practices shall not be taken of itself to be threatening or intended to stir up hatred."
The Government currently thinks it has got the balance right between preventing the offence and allowing free speech. However the Bill is worded in a similar way to the Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006 and the courts are likely to see the need to interpret the two pieces of legislation differently if no free speech is included in the Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill as it was in the Racial and Religious Hatred Act.
The vote was expected to come up on Wednesday 23rd April but the Government has just announced that it will extend Monday's sitting to midnight, and it is likely that it will be very late by the time the amendment is voted on. This is unexpected and means that many Peers who were planning to vote might not be present. It appears to be a Government ploy to ensure the amendment is not passed.
Please pray for the same type of voting miracle witnessed by Christians for a similar free speech amendment in the Racial and Religious Hatred Act
Link to the Bill:
http://services.parliament.uk/bills/2007-08/criminaljusticeandimmigration.html
Link to the free speech amendment (scroll down to 87A):
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200708/ldbills/041/amend/ml041-iirc.htm
Our submission on the proposed law:
http://www.lawcf.org/index.asp?page=LCF+Submission+on+homosexual+hatred+proposal