Racial and Religious Hatred Bill

My Lords, I am usually on the side of the noble Baroness, Lady O’Cathain, but not on this occasion, I fear, because if this question of blasphemy is not dealt with, and dealt with now, there will be a continual niggle between the Christian Church and other Churches. It is important that that niggle is removed. Only by removing the blasphemy laws can we remove it. A number of speakers, including the noble Lord, Lord Clinton-Davis, have said that this Bill is not the right vehicle for these amendments, but if it is in order within the Long Title, it is a perfectly legitimate thing to do. All sorts of Bills are amended in the Commons and in this House because amendments can be got in within the Long Title. Noble Lords should not be seduced by the view that the Bill is not an appropriate vehicle. It is. The amendment is perfectly legitimate, and now is the time for this matter to be settled. As the noble Lord, Lord Wedderburn, said, that would then give the House of Commons the opportunity to have a go at it, too. There is another reason why we should deal with this matter tonight. We all welcome the remarks and the position set out by the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Oxford. He has indicated, as did the noble and right reverend Lord, Lord Carey, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, that the Church of England itself is ready for abolition of the blasphemy law. It is true that they say, ““Not yet, not through this Bill””, but if they agree in principle with abolition, and that that would assist in achieving peace, if I can put it that way, between the religions, why not consider it and vote for it today? I realise that there are only two Bishops on the Bishops’ Bench, but perhaps a few telephone calls could go out to bring in others to support the amendment. I hope that we can reach a conclusion on this matter and we should thank the noble Lord, Lord Avebury, for introducing the amendment.