Hate laws set to be overhauled ‘to protect freedom of speech’
CONTROVERSIAL hate speech laws in England and Wales are set to be overhauled because they are being used to attack freedom of speech.
Home Secretary Priti Patel is looking at how to reform the laws which were brought in by Tony Blair’s Labour government to tackle racism and homophobia, a Home Office source has confirmed.
A campaign to remove them is being spearheaded by North West Leicestershire MP Andrew Bridgen.
He highlighted the case of ex-police officer Harry Miller, who had a Humberside police officer turn up at his workplace to “check his thinking” for getting involved in a transgender debate online.
The case ended up in the High Court after it was reported as a hate crime, but it was dismissed by a judge who compared the police force’s actions to the Gestapo.
Mr Bridgen said: “It is far from an easy task, as regulation of language is inherently subjective, however we cannot leave this matter up to the discretion of High Court judges.
“They are not helped by British law defining hate crimes as ‘any criminal offence which is perceived by the victim, or any other person, to be motivated by hostility or prejudice towards someone based on a personal characteristic’. To protect free speech and democracy, this legislation must be repealed.”
Ipswich MP Tom Hunt is also leading efforts within the powerful Common Sense group of MPS to overhaul the laws.
He said political opponents had invoked the law to make allegations against him after he had used a newspaper column to suggest that certain ethnic groups, statistically, were behind particular crimes.
He said: “Left-wing campaigners were posting a link for people to report me to the police.
“I was interviewed but no charges were brought because I had said and done nothing wrong.
“These laws are being used to attack free speech.”
There was also anger that the Metropolitan Police interviewed historian David Starkey and activist Darren Grimes over a conversation they had on slavery in a podcast.
A source close to Ms confirmed that “reform” the table.
Patel is on