Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Deputy is right. It is not just a case of people feeling unsafe; they are unsafe simply because of who they are. We have had quite sinister attacks. While I do not want to get into particular cases, very serious incidents have taken place. We do not have to look too far to find somebody who has been the victim of some form of hate crime, motivated simply because of the colour of their skin, where they have come from, or the potential partner they have and we need to say very clearly, as a society, that this is not okay. Gardaí have made it very clear to me that we need this legislation, that hate crimes are on the increase and that we need to respond effectively.

We all have a responsibility to call out the misinformation that is being spread, particularly about this legislation. This is not about criminalising opinions or preventing people from engaging in meaningful debate, be it political, academic or otherwise. It is about making sure that people who are at risk have protection. We need to say that very clearly and to provide gardaí with the resources they need to be able to respond to these types of incidents.

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