Francis Noel Duffy (Dublin South West, Green Party)
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596. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if the new Bill to tackle hate crime and hate speech includes provisions to protect members of the LGBTQ+ community given the rise in homophobic attacks recently; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [59417/22]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy is aware, Ireland has become a more diverse and welcoming country in recent decades.

I strongly condemn the actions of the small minority of people who subject others to abuse or attack resulting from their own prejudice. These types of attacks cannot, and will not, be tolerated.

Minister McEntee recently published a Bill to update laws criminalising hate speech and legislate against hate crimes for the first time in Irish law. The Criminal Justice (Incitement to Violence or Hatred and Hate Offences) Bill 2022 will create new, aggravated forms of certain existing criminal offences – i.e. hate crimes - where those offences are aggravated by hatred of a protected characteristic.

Offences aggravated by hatred will carry an enhanced penalty and the record of any conviction for such an offence will clearly state that the offence was a hate crime. Creating these new offences will mean that a crime can be investigated from the beginning as a potential hate crime by the An Garda Síochána and evidence of the hate element can be presented (and challenged) in court.

The Bill will also strengthen the law around incitement to hatred - or hate speech – by reflecting the current context more accurately; including online hateful content. The new legislation will modernise the existing Prohibition on Incitement to Hatred Act 1989 by criminalising any intentional or reckless communication or behaviour that is likely to incite violence or hatred against a person or persons because they are associated with a protected characteristic.

The protected characteristics that underpin the new legislation are race; colour; nationality; religion; national or ethnic origin; descent; gender (including gender expression or gender identity); sex characteristics; sexual orientation; and disability.

Development of this legislation follows a comprehensive consultation process that began in 2019 and included surveys, consultation and engagement with people with lived experience of the impact of hate speech and hate crime. Developing the new law on the foundations of this consultation means that it is grounded in the reality of what minority and vulnerable communities need to protect them from the hate crime and hate speech they face every day.

Minister McEntee met with LGBTQ+ organisations in recent months to update them on progress in developing the Bill and to ensure that their concerns informed the final drafting process. This positive and constructive engagement led to some changes to the Bill as it was being drafted, including the addition of sex characteristics as a protected characteristic which was a key request from LGBTQ+ civil society organisations.

The Bill will progress through the various stages in the Oireachtas in the coming weeks and months.