A source in the Home Office has confirmed that Home Secretary Priti Patel is looking at how to reform hate speech laws which were brought in by Tony Blair’s Labour government to try and tackle racism and homophobia.
It is understood that officials have spoken to MPs about changes with many Conservative backbenchers pushing for a complete repeal of the laws.
The campaign to remove them is being spearheaded by North West Leicestershire MP Andrew Bridgen but is also backed by the Common Sense group of Conservative MPs that has this week pushed plans to force universities to protect freedom of speech.
Writing for the Sunday Express, Mr Bridgen noted that hate speech laws were also the backdrop for companies like Twitter, Youtube and Facebook banning people like President Donald Trump or companies like Talk Radio.
He 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 big tech bosses and 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“To protect free speech and democracy, this legislation must be repealed.”
A source close to Ms Patel warned that complete repeal could give police forces “free reign” in pursuing hate crimes.
“Our worry is the police are using them for going after things that aren’t crimes,” the source added highlighting the Grimes case before confirming that “reform” is on the table.
Editor-in-Chief | Carl D. Pearson has been involved in British politics and media from an early age, with the key knowledge of what it takes to run a news organisation for the 21st century. Mr Pearson, as Editor-in-chief, is responsible for supervising the daily tasks of publishing media and content to UNN’s website and various platforms.
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