Opinion split in Northampton over misogyny being named a hate crime as MP and councillor weigh in

Northampton politics is divided over a recent decision by the House of Lords to make misogyny, the hatred of woman, a hate crime alongside racism and homophobia, should the Commons pass it.

The amendment was approved in the House of Lords on Monday (January 17), with 242 votes in favour and 185 against, meaning it will now go to the House of Commons for MPs to vote on.

If successful there, after a lengthy period of 'ping pong' between the two houses, the amendment will eventually be implemented and be used to apply harsher sentences for male offenders whose crimes are perceived to be sexist.

But MP for Northampton South Andrew Lewer said that he did not agree with the Lords' decision.

Instead he supported the conclusion of a September 2020 report by the Law Commission, an independent body that recommends legal changes for England and Wales, which said that making misogyny a hate crime would not reduce the crime.

He said: “I am disappointed that the Lords has ignored the recommendations of the recently published Hate Crimes report when introducing its amendment to the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill.

"The Law Commission published the findings of their investigation a month ago where they specifically looked at making misogyny a hate crime but concluded that the move would not solve the real problem of hostility or prejudice directed against women because of their sex or gender.

"The review includes a number of recommendations around levelling up the protection for disability and LGBT victims, tackling sex and gender abuse, and protecting freedom of expression.

"The Government is currently reviewing the report and recommendations and I look forward to its full response in due course."

The MP also highlighted his hopes for the Government's request that, on an experimental basis, police forces will identify any crimes of violence against the person, including stalking and harassment, as well as sexual offences where the victim perceives it to have been motivated by a hostility based on their sex.

He said that he hopes this, while not making misogyny a crime, will 'inform longer-term decisions once the Government has considered the recommendations made by the Law Commission.'

The Prime Minister Boris Johnson also previously opposed the expansion of the offence back in October, when he said: "If you simply widen the scope of what you ask the police to do, you’ll just increase the problem."

However Danielle Stone, Labour Councillor for Castle Ward in West Northamptonshire Council, said the decision would see misogyny, much like racism and homophobia, made easier to detect, track and prevent.

The Councillor said: "Hate crime legislation has been very useful for the people who are experiencing and dealing with such incidents on a daily basis. It's been really useful for us in monitoring them.

"I think it's a means for us to understand what misogyny is and how we can deal with it. There are examples of where there's been laws put in place to raise equality standards for women, like in Norway or Sweden, and deal directly with misogyny.

"It's had a big impact for the better there and so we do have examples out there that we can look at.

"The amount of abuse that women get on a daily basis is unacceptable and it's not hard to see how that can spill into more serious crimes down the road. At least now we could do something about it."

The amendment's next step will be to go before the House of Commons to be amended and, eventually, voted on.