Make religious hatred a criminal offence, Blair told

The Discrimination Law Association (DLA) has written to Prime Minister Tony Blair calling for the introduction of legislation outlawing discrimination on religious grounds and making incitement to religious hatred a criminal offence.As a result of the World Trade Centre attacks and subsequent violence against the Muslim community in the UK, the DLA has passed a resolution urging that 'religious hatred is (made) a public order criminal offence in the same way as incitement of racial hatred'.Robin Allen QC, a member of the DLA's executive committee, said: 'A loophole in the Race Relations Act means that, while Jews and Sikhs are protected, because they have both a religious and a racial identity, Muslims are not.

At this difficult time, the Muslim community needs the equal protection of the law in home and at the workplace.'Linklaters partner Raymond Jeffers, chairman of the Employment Lawyers Association's legislative and policy committee, said: 'The government must bring in legislation outlawing religious discrimination in the workplace under the Treaty of Amsterdam.

It would make sense if they looked at all proposals of this nature together in a considered fashion.'He said he expected 'something to be produced within a month a so'.Andrew Towler