Tougher laws to fight hate crime in NI

A British government drive to stamp out increasing hate crime in Northern Ireland moved forward today when draft legislation was laid before Parliament in England.

The same legislation is being used to crack down on car crime, including the introduction of a new law which would allow courts to jail ‘joy-riders’ who cause death or serious injury for up to 14 years.

It is expected to be on the statute books by the end of the summer.

The draft Criminal Justice Order includes a statutory requirement for judges to treat hostility based in religion, race, disability or sexual orientation as an aggravating factor when sentencing.

Britain's Criminal Justice Minister John Spellar said the Government was pleased to be bringing forward draft legislation which would be a “valuable and effective tool in the fight against intolerance and hatred in Northern Ireland.”

He said he was also introducing two new offences – aggravated vehicle taking and causing death by aggravated vehicle taking – specifically to target and punish those who, he said, were often wrongly referred to as joy-riders.

“I am sending a clear message that this crime is unacceptable both to the Government and to the community”, said the Minister.

He added: “There car crime offences will carry appropriately tough new penalties and in cases where an offender has caused death, this could mean a sentence as high as 14 years.”

Mr Spellar said he was also increasing the maximum penalty for dangerous driving from two to five years.