If the Irish government gets its way, people could soon be arrested and jailed for ‘hate speech’ – even if they never say or write a single ‘hateful’ word.

The new Criminal Justice (Incitement to Violence or Hatred and Hate Offences) Bill, which is currently passing through the Irish parliament, contains some shockingly authoritarian provisions. The bill will outlaw the ‘communication’ of material or speech that might ‘incite hatred’ against people with certain protected characteristics (such as race, religion and gender). In practice, if other European hate-speech laws are any guide, ‘inciting hatred’ tends to mean little more than causing offence. This can be punishable by up to five years in prison.

As if all that weren’t draconian enough, it even makes it a crime, punishable by two years’ jail time, to simply ‘prepare or possess’ material likely to ‘incite hatred’. ‘Possession’ could mean nothing more than having an offensive video stored on your computer, or a dodgy meme saved on your phone.