Charlie Flanagan

The consultation, which will run until 13 December 2019, has been described as the “first phase” of a wider update of criminal law on hate speech and hate crime.

A separate consultation on hate crime legislation will not take place until next year as the Department of Justice is still completing research on the effectiveness of the different legislative approaches in other countries.

Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan said: “My aim in this entire process is to ensure that anyone who is subject to hate speech, or indeed an incident of hate crime, can be clear that they are fully supported by the laws of the land.

“As legislators we will also have a responsibility to strike the appropriate balance between ensuring legitimate freedom of expression and tackling unacceptable or criminal behaviour that can have devastating consequences for victims.”

The minister said the Department would draw on “people’s direct personal experiences” to deliver “new laws that are robust, clearly understood and capable of delivering justice where these unacceptable incidents occur”.

Meanwhile, the Department’s research on hate crime is expected to be completed in November, after which proposals for new legislation will be brought forward for discussion.

The Department said it anticipates that this proposed legislation may cover areas such as a physical attack on the person, criminal damage to buildings and property, public order offences, breaches of the peace and verbal attacks.