THE first clash between the minority SNP Government and the opposition parties is set to take place over the controversial anti-sectarian law brought in almost four years ago.
With Labour, the Liberal Democrats, the Conservatives and Greens all pledged to repeal the Offensive Behaviour at Football and Threatening Communications Act 2012, the Scottish Government last night pledged to fully back the law; which has been criticised by sheriffs, lawyers and fans alike, particularly as it does not state what exactly constitutes “offensive” behaviour.
Labour MSP James Kelly has pledged to bring in a Member’s Bill, saying: “Labour will work with other parties in the Scottish Parliament to repeal the Football Act.
“The law has become a symbol of the SNP’s arrogance in government. No other party supported the law but the SNP used their majority to bulldoze it through anyway. The SNP are now a minority government and that means parliament can repeal the SNP Football Act.”
In an unusually strongly worded statement, the Scottish Government warned that repealing the act – which a poll found was supported by 80 per cent of Scots - would send a “wrong signal” about the campaign against sectarianism.
A spokesman said: “The vast majority of football supporters are well-behaved and simply wish to support their team and enjoy the game. The Offensive Behaviour at Football and Threatening Communications Act has delivered real improvements.
“Since its introduction, religious crimes, race crimes and crimes in relation to individuals’ sexuality are down and we’ve seen a decrease in crimes of offensive behaviour at, or in relation to, regulated football matches in Scotland.
“Statistics show a steady decline in offences at stadiums and a YouGov poll shows 80 per cent of Scots support the act — a view shared by the overwhelming majority of those in the sample who follow Scottish football.
“The act sends out a clear message that Scotland will not tolerate any form of prejudice, discrimination or hate crime, and it gives police and prosecutors an additional tool to tackle this behaviour.
“Any move to repeal the Act at this time would send entirely the wrong signal and would undermine progress in driving all forms of prejudice from the game.”
The Government also pointed out that it remains committed to tackling all forms of prejudice and discrimination and has invested £11.5 million for this, during the last four years.
With only 63 MSPs, the other parties could muster 65 and defeat the Government on this and other issues, but only if they all unite – “that would be just great – for us,” said an SNP source, who said that while the law could be amended, senior party figures believe all four opposition parties will score a spectacular own goal if they go for outright repeal.
That is what Tory chief whip John Lamont wants. He said: “Having prevented the SNP from gaining an overall majority, we can now use the powers of the parliament to scrap some of the bad laws they passed in the last one.
“To do that, opposition parties need to work together where possible — and, as Scotland’s main opposition, we aim to facilitate that as best we can.”
The Scottish Greens reaffirmed their manifesto commitment for repeal and the Liberal Democrats’ spokesman said: “We all want to tackle sectarianism but this law was a badly drafted, knee-jerk reaction to a genuine problem and Lib Dems are committed to scrapping it.
“Tackling sectarianism goes beyond 90 minutes on the terraces. The Scottish Government created the independent advisory group on tackling sectarianism. We need ministers to listen to the experts.”
An official SNP spokesman said: “This legislation is about taking firm action against sectarianism and other offensive behaviour, and it speaks volumes about Labour’s priorities that they see teaming up with the Tories to try and scrap such laws as the most important issue facing Scotland.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here