Lord Bracadale’s hate crime report recommends new statutory aggravations for gender and age

Lord Bracadale

Lord Bracadale’s review sets out recommendations in relation to the suite of laws covering hate crime offences in Scotland.

It considered whether current laws are appropriate and consistent; if hate crime legislation needs to be simplified, rationalised or harmonised; if new categories of hate crime for characteristics not currently legislated for need to be created.

He has now made 22 recommendations, including the introduction of aggravations where offending involves hostility on the grounds of gender and age, in addition to the current characteristics of race, religion, disability, sexual orientation and transgender identity; and the creation of a wider suite of offences to deal with threatening or abusive conduct which stirs up hatred in respect of each of these characteristics.

Lord Bracadale said: “I saw my review not just as a legal exercise, but also as an opportunity to find out what was happening in the community. So at every stage I spent a lot of time listening to a wide range of people, including those in the criminal justice system, representatives of various community-focused organisations, and concerned individuals.

“In a civilised society people should be able to live together, respecting one another and treating each other fairly, regardless of differences. Hate crime legislation will not achieve that alone. But a clear, well defined and implemented scheme does have a fundamental contribution to make.

“My report is intended to enable Scottish politicians to debate the issues involved and to encourage public discourse. I hope the review has made some contribution to tackling the very real problem of hate crime, and I am grateful to all who participated in it.”

Legal affairs minister Annabelle Ewing said: “I am grateful to Lord Bracadale and his team for completing such a thorough piece of work.

“We agree that Scotland’s hate crime laws should be consolidated into a single piece of legislation. The Scottish government will use this report as a basis for wider consultation with communities and groups across the country on how to bring forward new legislation that is fit for the 21st century.

“We have been consistently clear that legislation alone will not achieve the inclusive and equal society that we aspire to, however the laws passed by Parliament do form a clear basis for what is and is not acceptable in the communities we are elected to serve. We will continue to work with communities across Scotland to build trust and understanding and, wherever possible, prevent hate crime from happening in the first place.”

Photo credit: Catholic Parliamentary Office