To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what legal provisions are in place to prevent (a) the preaching of hatred and (b) incitement to commit criminal acts against the Jewish community in England and Wales; and if she will make a statement. (151003)

Part III of the Public Order Act 1986 contains a number of offences covering acts intended or likely to stir up racial hatred. These include: use of words or behaviour or display of written material which is threatening, abusive or insulting; publishing or distributing such written material; presenting or directing a public performance of a play involving the use of threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour; distributing, showing or playing recordings of images or sounds which are threatening, abusive or insulting; providing, producing, directing or appearing in a programme service involving threatening, abusive or insulting visual images or sounds; and possessing threatening, abusive or insulting written material or recordings of visual images or sounds with a view to displaying, publishing, distributing or playing them in a programme service. Anti-Semitic hatred is covered by these offences as Jews are defined as a racial group. The maximum penalty for inciting racial hatred is seven years’ imprisonment.

In addition to the range of existing incitement offences, the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 created nine racially-aggravated offences, including assaults, criminal damage and harassment, which make available to the courts higher maximum penalties where there is evidence of racist motivation or racial hostility in connection with the offence. The Act also requires a judge or magistrate dealing with any offence which is racially-aggravated to state in open court that they have found it to be so aggravated, and therefore meriting an increased sentence.

The Powers of Criminal Courts (Sentencing) Act 2000 introduces a requirement for courts to take account of racial or religious motivation in sentencing for other offences.

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assistance she has (a) given and (b) plans to give to the Jewish community in England and Wales to protect it against attacks and violence; and if she will make a statement. (151004)

I can assure the hon. gentleman that this Government take all attacks and violence seriously, and particularly those motivated by prejudice and hatred. We have in place a programme of work to tackle all hate crime, including that motivated by anti-Semitism, based on: increasing reporting; ensuring a more effective response from authorities; bringing more offences to justice; using local data to prevent hate crime from happening in the first place; and better understanding the extent and nature of all hate crimes.

If any members of the community have been the subject of an attack or violence, they should contact the police immediately. If they are worried that they may be the subject of an attack or violence, they should contact their local police Crime Prevention Officer, who can offer specific advice as to protective security measures that may be taken.