Legal experts call for blasphemy to be redefined

LEGAL experts have called for a referendum to scrap or change the only criminal offence that exists in the constitution — blasphemy.

The Bar Council, which represents barristers, says the offence is “legally a mess” and should be abolished altogether or given a proper definition as there is no explanation in Irish law as to what exactly it means.

The legal oddity, contained in article 40.6.1 of the constitution, is generally understood to mean offending against a religion or religious beliefs, but it has only resulted in one court case and the Supreme Court ruled then it could not authorise a prosecution because the state had not defined what it meant.