It is reported that the controversial hate speech laws, the Criminal Justice (Incitement to Violence or Hatred and Hate Offences) Bill 2022, may now not become law before the summer recess.
While Minister Helen McEntee had said weeks ago that she was pushing to get the legislation signed into law as quickly as possible, it is believed that it may now be delayed until the autumn.
Controversy around the bill heightened when it was revealed that the government had pressed ahead with the legislation despite a significant majority opposing it in the public consultation – and when an array of legal experts, politicians and commentators pointed to what they said were draconian measures in the text.
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar defends disregarding the results of the public consultation on "hate speech" laws, arguing that "very often" such consultations are hijacked by "campaigning groups" and are not "reflective of public opinion."#gript pic.twitter.com/X6EC0uF6NO
— gript (@griptmedia) May 4, 2023
Now the Journal reports that:
“despite the Dáil and Seanad rising in less than ten days time for the summer recess, it is understood that the legislation will not be moved to Committee Stage until September at the earliest.”
“It is understood that following the Seanad debate on the bill last month, a number of government senators requested a meeting with the minister to highlight their concerns about the new law.”
Among the concerns raised are issues around free speech, the failure to define hatred, the failure to define gender, powers of search and seizure being granted under the bill, potential stifling of political debate and others.
Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar says his government has "no official position" on how many genders there are, even though genders "other than male or female" are protected categories under his government's hate speech bill.#gript pic.twitter.com/wH0kKmUnLP
— gript (@griptmedia) June 26, 2023
“Upon such evidence being given, and a warrant granted, the guards can enter your home, search every person there, seize every single electronic device in the house, your phones, your laptops, your tablets, those of your partner, children’s phones, they can take anything,… pic.twitter.com/DvH6D02HxU
— Free Speech Ireland (@FreeSpeechIre) July 2, 2023
Senator warns that activist groups are “likely to push gardaí and DPP into taking action” against people for possession of material subjectively seen as ‘hateful’ due to lack of definition in new hate speech bill.#gript pic.twitter.com/XCCxzaWYCD
— gript (@griptmedia) June 12, 2023
But Minister Helen McEntee said that she believed the bill was about protecting people from hate crimes and claimed it enjoyed widespread support.