‘We All Know What Hate is’ - Eh, No We Don’t!

The talk in Leinster House is that we are heading for an election in mid-November. Without a doubt, Taoiseach Simon Harris has handled the silly season much better than his predecessors. There is a careful and measured attempt to control the message and ensure a stream of positive news, particularly about the budget.

So, why? Why? Would the government undo all this by reintroducing the nonsense Hate Speech Bill? My prediction is that it will wither on the vine. Unknown to most outside the corridors of Leinster House, this Bill inspired one of the most effective emailing campaigns of almost any issue since I first took my seat in the Seanad in 2014. While one might try to write this off, it is hard to do so.

Introducing the nonsense Hate Speech Bill at this stage would be a monumental act of self-harm. Minister Helen McEntee has been a less than inspiring advocate of the Bill. In the Seanad, I drew attention to the discrepancies between what the Minister thought was in the Bill and what was actually in the Bill, along with the dangers of failing to define the word “hate” in the legislation. Since then, Minister McEntee has done little to inspire confidence in anyone; putting her back into the limelight at this time would be the opposite of the good news and positive coverage that the government needs.

In other jurisdictions, Hate Speech laws have been subject to arbitrary enforcement. In Scotland, their Hate Speech Bill had 10,000 calls in just over eight days after its introduction. In countries across Europe, what would be considered mainstream views on the Israel-Palestine conflict in Ireland have been targeted as Hate Speech. Creating a rubber law that can be bent to suit the needs of anyone in especially those in power should be concerning to everyone. The Bill has the potential to do serious damage in the short and long term.

The nonsense Hate Speech Bill could succeed in its goal of uniting people across multiple divides…against the government! Who will be the mudguard for the NGOs who so desperately wanted this Bill in the first place – perhaps this is not the type of unity Harris needs when a General Election must be held in less than six months from now.

While Sinn Féin have experienced a dip in the polls and did not do as well in the locals as they expected. The future for this government and Simon Harris is far from certain. The Local Election had a meagre turnout of approximately 50 per cent; General Elections usually have a higher turnout, approximately 67 per cent. Many government TDs are retiring. If the results of this election don’t live up to expectations, Harris will go down in history as the shortest-serving Taoiseach in Irish history - he knows this!

In the Seanad, the independent group warned the government that the double referenda would fail before it finally did. My advice is Taoiseach – don’t repeat the same mistake twice. I’m not sure what your special advisors are telling you, but my advice is that bringing back this highly unpopular Bill in a volatile political climate is bad news for everyone. You will pay for it at the ballot box much like how Sinn Féin suffered for supporting the referenda's in the local & EU elections. If by any chance you are reading this, if not for the nation's sake, but for your sake, read the room – bin the Bill! ?