The Hate Crime Bill is “disproportionate” and needs to be scrapped, Sinn Féin has said. 

The party supported the bill which if passed will prohibit the “incitement to violence or hatred against a person or a group of persons on account of certain characteristics”. 

Yesterday, the party issued a press release urging to the Government to drop the legislation on the grounds it is currently "not fit for purpose".

Speaking to Newstalk Breakfast, Sinn Féin Justice spokesperson Pa Daly said it is “badly thought through” and the party's efforts to amend it had been ignored. 

“We agreed that there should be a strong statement to protect vulnerable people or people of what they call ‘protected characteristics’ in the bill but the Government didn’t listen at all,” he said. 

“They didn’t accept any amendments, any amendments they introduced themselves are only of a technical nature.

“So, at this stage we’re saying the bill should be scrapped.” 

Leinster House.

Deputy Daly said Sinn Féin wants the Government to “start again” and said Ministers have not “listened all along” to critics of the legislation. 

“I remember when Minister Harris himself was in the Justice Committee when he was standing in for Minister McEntee [who was on maternity leave],” Deputy Daly said. 

“He said himself that he wants the bill to be effective and for people to be prosecuted where appropriate and that is a guiding principle here.

“I don’t believe that the Government has delivered on that type of legislation; I feel that parts of the bill are disproportionate, parts of it are lacking in clarity, parts of it are... presuming and assuming certain things. 

“So, at this stage, the best thing to do is to scrap the bill.” 

'A reason to amend it'

Fine Gael Senator Barry Ward said Justice Minister Helen McEntee will “consider” any criticism of the legislation noting that the current version of the bill will not be the final one. 

“That process is ongoing, why you wouldn’t wait for that to happen I don’t really know,” he said. 

“Yes, the bill’s unpopular but that’s not a reason to scrap it, that’s a reason to amend it. 

“That’s a reason to take on board what people have said and see if it can be improved. 

“It’s still at committee stage in the Seanad, so there’s still enough time for them to make amendments to make it better.”

Justice Minister Helen McEntee at Government Buildings, 31-08-2022. Image: Sam Boal/RollingNews

Yesterday, incoming Taoiseach Simon Harris gave his support to the bill and said the current legislation does “require updating”. 

He also promised to approach the issue “with humility and listen to people and the concerns that they are raising”.

Main image: Gardaí outside Leinster House, Dublin. Picture by: Alamy.com