The Bloc Québécois plans to propose a modification to a bill introduced by the Liberal government that would eliminate a religious exemption from Canada’s hate speech laws, according to information provided to CBC News. Currently, the Criminal Code includes an exemption for hate speech related to expressing opinions on religious subjects or beliefs in religious texts. The Bloc intends to introduce the amendment to remove this provision from the Criminal Code as part of Bill C-9, known as the Combatting Hate Act, during a detailed review by the House justice committee. Rhéal Fortin, a member of the Bloc, is part of the justice committee.
The identity of the source revealing this information has been kept confidential by CBC News due to lack of authorization to speak publicly about the proposed amendment. While the National Post previously reported that the Liberals would support the amendment to pass C-9, CBC News has not independently verified the existence of such an agreement.
Justice Minister Sean Fraser has shown openness to the idea of removing the religious exemption, stating that he welcomes input from witnesses on the matter. Marc Miller, who chaired the justice committee before his recent promotion to cabinet, also expressed willingness to consider eliminating the exemption, emphasizing that hate crimes should not be justified by religious texts.
Opposition from Conservatives has surfaced against the removal of the religious exemptions clause from the Criminal Code following the National Post report. Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre raised concerns that the change could criminalize sections of sacred texts like the Bible, Qur’an, and Torah.
Advocates have called for the withdrawal of the entire bill, including new Criminal Code offenses proposed by C-9 that aim to criminalize the intentional promotion of hatred against identifiable groups using specific symbols associated with hate or terrorism. The legislation also aims to address hate-motivated crimes and target intimidation outside places of worship and sensitive institutions.
A coalition comprising civil liberties, community, and labor groups urged the government to retract the bill, citing threats to free expression and the right to protest. Tim McSorley from the International Civil Liberties Monitoring Group emphasized concerns about the bill’s impact on freedom of assembly and dissent during a news conference alongside representatives from other organizations.
If the bill advances through the committee, it will undergo a final vote in the House before being forwarded to the Senate for further consideration.