Conservative politicians and faith leaders are warning Canadian citizens could face criminal prosecution for publicly reading scripture after controversial hate speech legislation removes longstanding religious expression protections.
Andrew Lawton, a Conservative member of Parliament, told Fox News Digital that Bill C-9 “makes it easier for people of faith and others to be criminally charged because of views that other people take offense to” following the measure’s passage through the House of Commons on 25 March.
The Combatting Hate Act—introduced last September by Justice Minister Sean Fraser—heads to the Senate after removing sections 319(3)(b) and 319(3.1)(b) from Canada’s criminal code, which currently prevent hate speech convictions when defendants argue they expressed “good faith” opinions based on religious texts.
Liberal MP Marc Miller crystallised concerns during October House justice committee hearings when he identified specific Biblical passages he believes constitute hate speech. “I don’t understand how the concept of good faith could be invoked if someone were literally invoking a passage from, in this case, the Bible,” Miller stated, citing Leviticus, Deuteronomy and Romans as containing “hateful” content toward homosexuals.
“Clearly, there are situations in these texts where statements are hateful. They should not be used to invoke… or be a defense,” he added.
The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops urged Prime Minister Mark Carney in December 2025 to amend the legislation, warning the removed exemption has “served for many years as an essential safeguard to ensure that Canadians are not criminally prosecuted for their sincere, truth-seeking expression of beliefs made without animus and grounded in long-standing religious traditions.”
The Canadian Muslim Public Affairs Council warned Bill C-9 “poses disproportionate risks not only to marginalized and racialized communities, but to faith-based communities more broadly including Muslim, Christian, Hindu, Sikh, and Jewish communities.”
Mr Lawton stated the legislation “weakens protections for freedom of expression and freedom of religion, especially with the removal of the longstanding religious defense.”
Minister Fraser defended the bill on 9 December, insisting: “Canadians will always be able to pray, preach, teach, interpret scripture, and express religious belief in good faith, without fear of criminal sanction.”
Proponents argue the measure addresses hate crimes that have surged 169 per cent since 2018 according to government data, with some Jewish organisations supporting provisions targeting antisemitism.
The bill would additionally criminalise displaying Nazi symbols or designated terrorist emblems with maximum two-year imprisonment, whilst creating hate crime sentence enhancements for offenses motivated by hatred based on race, religion, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity.
