The Government faced strong opposition from members of the public over plans to expand ‘hate’ crime and ‘hate’ speech laws, newly released documents show.

More than 3,600 submissions by letter or online from the public, elected representatives, political parties and academics were received ahead of Ministers last week approving a Bill intended to make prosecutions for hate speech and hate crimes easier.

People complained that the plans were an “interference” in freedom-of-speech entitlements, represented a “grave threat” to democracy and could be considered “Orwellian”.

The Department of Justice received 3,526 online survey responses, with a number stating that there should be “no limit” on free speech.

While the public were mostly against the proposals, the majority of submissions from politicians and academics agreed with the proposed new law.