The Government’s decision to not proceed with the ‘hate speech’ provisions of a proposed ‘hate crime’ law has been welcomed by the Independent Senator, Ronan Mullen.
Minister for Justice Helen McEntee confirmed the move on Saturday, but said she will press ahead with the hate crime part of the criminal justice bill.
Essentially, this means that the parts that deal with alleged incitement to violence and hatred – commonly known as the hate speech elements – will be removed and the Government will press ahead with the other elements that deal with hate crime. This provides for tougher sentences for criminal offences where hate is proven as a motivation for the crime.
While opponents of the bill welcomed the change, they remain skeptical of the remaining, less-controversial part of the bill.
Independent Senator, Ronan Mullen said, the bill “will still need a precise definition of ‘hatred’ and the Government’s proposed weird new definition of ‘gender’ within the list of ‘protected characteristics’ has to change or it will set a negative precedent for future laws”.
Teachers are telling schoolboys that displaying traditional gendered roles in a family could lead to them committing rape, a bombshell report has claimed.
The Family Education Trust (FET) found that almost a third of schools it surveyed use relationship and sex education classes to teach pupils about ‘toxic masculinity’.
In one schools’ teaching materials, children are told that while masculinity ‘in itself is not necessarily a harmful thing’ certain masculine traits can be seen as ‘problematic’.
Another presents a ‘pyramid of sexual violence’, which suggests that certain minor behaviours such as ‘displaying traditional gendered roles’ may develop into other examples of ‘gender-based violence’ such as flashing, groping and even rape.
The FET said that such lessons are teaching pupils about a ‘problematic new ideology’ that presents the idea that ‘boys and men possess traits that are inherently negative for society’.
Violent pornography is “fundamentally changing” the views of young boys about sex, the home secretary has said as new figures reveal police are receiving more reports of rape from 14-year-old girls than any other age group.
In an interview with The Times, Yvette Cooper said the graphic nature of material boys are now exposed to is influencing the way they treat girls and women. She said schools and parents were failing to teach young boys what sexual behaviour was acceptable.
Figures obtained by The Times reveal that nearly a third of victims reported to the police involved girls aged 18 and under in the year to March.
Data on female rape victims disclosed by 31 of the 43 police forces in England and Wales show that 1,458 girls aged 14 reported a rape to the police in 2023-24, more than any other age group. The figures suggest that rape victims are getting younger, as in the previous year the largest group reporting the crime were 15-year-olds.
https://www.thetimes.com/article/e362f924-d812-44fd-9b54-526ee09438fd
The Report of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on the contentious issue of assisted suicide is set to be voted on in the Dáil on Thursday, 17 October.
A vote of approval would mean that the recommendations of the Report are adopted as the basis for legislative and policy change in this area.
The Report made 38 recommendations, including that the Government introduces legislation allowing for ‘assisted dying’, in what it termed ‘certain restricted circumstances.’
The committee also recommended that people diagnosed with certain diseases, illnesses, or medical conditions should be eligible for ‘assisted dying’. Other recommendations include the view that eligibility for assisted dying should be limited to people aged 18 or over.
New legislation to outlaw prolife activity near facilities providing abortion does nothing to help women, according to a leading campaigner.
The new law will which is due to go into operation on October 17th makes even silent prayer within 100 metres of a GP clinic or hospital a criminal act.
“This draconian law will do nothing to help women in unplanned pregnancies,” said Eilis Mulroy, spokesperson for the Pro Life Campaign.
Ms Mulroy explained “this law criminalises any perceived attempt to influence one’s decision to have an abortion within a 100-metre zone of a premises where abortion could be provided. This includes every GP practice, maternity hospital, or family planning clinic in the country.”
“It isn’t about preventing ‘protests’, as it will criminalise the possibility of a woman receiving an offer of help when she might need it most.”
Providing free contraception to 16-year-olds would amount to the State “giving licence to underage sexual activity”, according to Aontú leader Peadar Tóibín.
His remarks comes after it emerged Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly is seeking an expansion to the scheme providing free contraception to women to include 16-year-olds, despite the age of consent for sex being 17.
Meath West TD Mr Tóibín criticised the proposal saying “sexual activity for children is dangerous” and “engaging in risky sexual behaviours can lead to HIV infection, sexually transmitted diseases, and unintended pregnancy among children.
“There is also significant emotional and mental health consequences to sexual activity among minors.”
“Children are incredibly susceptible to peer pressure. This peer pressure may well increase for a child, if the State, in a practical sense, is giving licence to underage sexual activity.”
A new law to establish “safe access zones” outside abortion facilities in England and Wales has been called “unnecessary and disproportionate”, by the Catholic bishops’ conference.
The legislation criminalizes a range of activities within 150-meters of abortion clinics, including potentially prayer, peaceful presence, consensual communication and offers of practical support.
The Bishops say the new law is “deeply concerning” as a threat to freedom of speech, thought, conscience and religion for all people.
“As the Catholic Bishops’ Conference repeatedly stated during the passage of the Public Order Bill last year, ‘safe access zone’ legislation is unnecessary and disproportionate. We condemn all harassment and intimidation of women and hold that, as was accepted in a Home Office Review, there are already laws and mechanisms in place to protect women from such behaviour,” said Bishop John Sherrington, the Lead Bishop for Life Issues for the conference.
“In practice, and despite any other intention, this legislation constitutes discrimination and disproportionately affects people of faith,” he said.
Health Minister Stephen Donnelly is pushing to expand a state-paid “free” contraception scheme to 16-year-olds as part of Budget 2025, even though the age of consent is 17.
It comes despite a 2019 Working Group on Access to Contraception, under the then Health Minister, Simon Harris, say the scheme would probably be a waste of public funds.
Contraception is currently “free” for women aged 17 to 35, under measures brought in by the Fianna Fáil minister.
However, there is resistance within the Department of Health for the initiative to be extended to girls aged 16 due to “medical ethics” – given that the age of consent in Ireland is 17.
The minister is understood to be pushing back against the “legally complex” issue, as he believes free contraception should be made available to 16-year-old girls, as the State already provides abortions to girls of that age.
Mr Donnelly has also pointed to the age of medical independence being 16 – meaning that, from that age, children can go by themselves to a GP and do not need parental or guardian consent.
The UK Home Office has announced that a ban on “influencing” within 150m of an abortion facility will commence 31st October 2024.
In a press release issued 18th September, the Home Office confirmed that anyone found guilty of breaking the law will face an unlimited fine.
Human rights experts warn that the ban on “influencing” is too broad, leaving innocent people open to prosecution for engaging in consensual conversation or even silent thought:
“Good law should be clear, consistent and predictable but the buffer zones legislation set to be enacted is vague and broadly drafted. By banning “influencing” – a broad and sweeping term – over an area stretching 300m in diameter, the law is wide open to misinterpretation and abuse.
“In the places where “buffer zones” already exist under local authorities, we have already seen three individuals prosecuted over the past two years, simply for praying silently in the privacy of their own minds.
Despite recent reports that Ministers were considering naming silent prayer as an offence in buffer zone guidance, the government did not ultimately publish such guidance. But the extent of what is unlawful is unclear.
The British Prime Minister is seeking to fast-track a euthanasia/assisted suicide law through Parliament before Christmas, according to reports.
Sir Keir Starmer reportedly made his decision after Labour MPs dominated the results of the annual Private Member’s Bill ballot, the Mail on Sunday has said.
Winners of the ballot can propose Bills for debate.
One Labour MP on the list said he had been offered two extra staff members to help him draft a Bill if he proposed legalising assisted suicide.
When the issue was last debated by the Commons in 2015, it was defeated on a free vote by 330 votes to 118. But it stands a greater chance of being passed now because of the influx of new Labour MPs.
Meanwhile a “citizen’s jury” that found in favour of assisted suicide has been criticised as “flawed”.
The randomly selected group of 28 members of the public deliberated for eight weeks before voting in favour of legalising assisted suicide by 20 votes to seven, with one person undecided.
But its findings have been criticised as not “impartial and balanced” by campaigners opposed to change.
