Helen McEntee

The minister announced her legislative plans today as she published the findings of the public consultation on hate speech and hate crime, which received over 3,600 submissions.

Her coming Hate Crime Bill will cover both incitement to hatred and hate crime. The new hate crime offences will be aggravated versions of existing crimes where they are carried out because of prejudice against a protected characteristic.

The new offences will allow gardaí to investigate crimes as potential hate crimes and for evidence of the hate element to be presented in court.

Where a jury finds that the crime was a hate crime based on the evidence, and convicts the person of a hate crime, the enhanced penalty for the new offence will available to the judge at sentencing. Where the jury finds that the hate element is not proven, they will still be able to convict the person of the ordinary form of the offence.

A judge-led review of hate crime laws in Northern Ireland recently recommended the introduction of a similar statutory aggravation model, which is already used in Scotland, north of the border.

Ms McEntee said: “As minister for justice, I am determined to tackle these crimes and to ensure that those who seek to divide our communities and spread hatred and fear, including online, are dealt with effectively by our criminal justice system. I want perpetrators to know that their crimes will be reported, investigated and prosecuted.

“There is no place for hate crime in our society. The legislation will deal with situation where perpetrators seek to incite other people to hatred from behind the protection of a screen or an anonymous account. This is an important factor in order for this legislation to be as effective as possible in tackling all forms of hate speech.”

She added: “Regarding the fundamental constitutional right of freedom of expression, I want to assure people that this legislation will be proportionate, specific, and clear, with offences capable of being proven beyond reasonable doubt. There will be no confusion as to what constitutes criminal hate speech.

“It is my hope we will develop a strong and effective legislative infrastructure to help tackle this serious form of crime which will also be evidence-based, while respecting important rights to freedom of expression and association.”