The Christian Institute

The Government has been dramatically defeated in the House of Commons over the Religious Hatred Bill. In two separate votes, MPs voted by 288 to 278 votes and by 283 to 282 votes to accept Lords amendments which introduced protections for free speech and evangelism.

The Religious Hatred Bill will become law, but with the excellent Lords safeguards included. This is a fantastic result. A wide range of Christian organisations, as well as other groups, have worked very hard to protect religious liberty. This victory shows the value of speaking out and never giving up.

Even MPs determined to support the Government changed their minds because of the repeated arguments of their constituents. Many Christians met their MP face-to-face, or wrote letters, or telephoned. This clearly had an effect.

Many MPs spoke out in favour of the Lords amendments.

How MPs voted