Greater Protections for Victims & Communities
New laws to tackle the harm caused by hatred and prejudice come into force next month.
The Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act will provide greater protection for victims and communities from 1 April.
It creates new stirring up of hatred offences for protected characteristics including age, disability, religion, sexual orientation and transgender identity. These extra provisions will add to the long-standing stirring up racial hatred offences, which have been in place since 1986.
Recent statistics show that 5,738 charges of hate crime were reported in Scotland in 2022-23. However, we know not all crimes will be reported.
A new Scottish Government public awareness raising campaign supported by Police Scotland has been launched today. The Hate Hurts campaign shows the impact of hate crime and encourages those who have witnessed or experienced a hate crime to come forward.
Hate crime is abhorrent and should be reported.
GRAEME
Criminal abuse rooted in prejudice cannot be tolerated, and I welcome the Hate Hurts campaign getting the message across.
We all know that there are limits to hateful speech in a free society, and new legislation is about bolstering protections already in place for almost forty years.
More widely the Scottish Government, while having presided over a massive decrease in crime in Scotland, is determined to increase support for victims.
For those impacted by hatred and prejudice, the results can be traumatic and life changing. While we respect everyone’s right to freedom of expression, nobody in our society should live in fear or be made to feel like they don’t belong, and the Scottish Government is committed to building safer communities that live free from hatred and prejudice.
MINISTER FOR VICTIMS & COMMUNITY SAFETY, SIOBHIAN BROWN
Hate crime is behaviour that is both criminal and rooted in prejudice. It can be verbal, physical, online or face-to-face. The new law will give greater protections to those who need it and helps to form the basis of understanding about the type of behaviour that is not acceptable in our society.
We must do all we can to give victims and witnesses the confidence to report instances of hate crime, which is why we have launched a new campaign, ‘Hate Hurts’. The campaign is informed by lived experience, and explains what a hate crime is, the impact it has on victims and how to report it.
Hate crime is vile and wrong. To target a person, a group or a community because of who they are, how they look, or how they choose to live their lives, undermines freedoms and rights we are entitled to enjoy as human beings.
POLICE SCOTLAND HATE CRIME PREVENTION LEAD, CHIEF SUPERINTENDENT FAROQUE HUSSAIN
We know it can be hard for people to report a hate crime, and in some cases to even recognise or acknowledge that they have been a victim.
We want everyone targeted by hate crime, or those who witness it, to have confidence to come forward. They can be assured they will be treated with dignity and respect and that the circumstances they report will be fully investigated.
Background
The Hate Hurts campaign runs 11-31 March across Scottish Government social media channels, video on demand and outdoor billboards.
The law currently recognises hate crime based on prejudice towards disability, race, religion, sexual orientation and transgender identity.
See Hate Crime in Scotland 2022-23 statistics.
The Hate Crime Strategy and Delivery Plan set out the Scottish Government’s strategic priorities for tackling hate crime in Scotland.
