Dr Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 25 February 2021 to Question 156232 on hate crime, subjectivity and equality before the law, whether the people conducting the review of hate crime legislation will have regard to the content of John Stuart Mill's essay On Liberty; what the principles underlying that review are; and if she will make a statement. [164330]
[Due for Answer on 11 March.]
ANSWER
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Safeguarding (Victoria Atkins): The Law Commission is conducting the hate crime review. The terms of reference for the review ask it to review the adequacy and parity of protection offered by the law relating to hate crime and to make recommendations for its reform.
This includes:
- Reviewing the current range of specific offences and aggravating factors in sentencing, and making recommendations on the most appropriate models to ensure that the criminal law provides consistent and effective protection from conduct motivated by hatred of protected groups or characteristics.
- Reviewing the existing range of protected characteristics, identifying gaps in the scope of the protection currently offered and making recommendations to promote a consistent approach.
Full details can be found at:
In the consultation that it issued in relation to this review, the Law Commission noted John Stuart Mill’s essay in relation to discussing the principles of free expression.