The World Forum – December 1, 2025

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he federal Liberal government, in a deal with the Bloc Québécois, has announced plans to amend Bill C-9, the Combatting Hate Act, to remove a long-standing exemption in the Criminal Code that protects expressions based on sincerely held religious beliefs when promoting hatred. This amendment, to be introduced at the House of Commons justice committee, would eliminate Section 319’s defence allowing individuals to avoid conviction for promoting hateful expression if it is rooted in a religious text. The change is tied to securing Bloc support for the bill, which aims to criminalize the public display of hate or terrorist symbols, create new offences for intimidating or obstructing access to religious or cultural places, and establish a hate crime offence for crimes motivated by hatred.

Opposition parties, particularly the Conservatives, have strongly criticized the move, warning it could criminalize passages from sacred texts like the Bible, Quran, and Torah, calling it an “unprecedented assault on free speech and freedom of religion”. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre stated the amendment would “criminalize sections of the Bible, Quran, Torah, and other sacred texts”. Civil liberties groups, including the Christian Legal Fellowship and the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, argue the exemption is a crucial constitutional safeguard that protects Canadians from imprisonment for good faith religious expression. They warn that removing it would expand criminal-law exposure to faith communities and pave the way for prosecutions based on religious teachings.
The Bloc Québécois supports the removal, arguing the current exemption has been used to “legitimize discriminatory or incendiary comments,” particularly antisemitic and homophobic rhetoric, under the guise of faith. Quebec’s government echoed this concern last year, stating the defence had enabled harmful expressions. However, critics, including the Canadian Civil Liberties Association and the Canadian Race Relations Foundation, caution that the bill’s broad definitions—especially the new intimidation and obstruction offences—risk infringing on Charter-protected freedoms, including peaceful protest and expression. The justice committee had been scheduled to review the bill clause-by-clause, but the meeting was delayed due to a Conservative filibuster, leaving a narrow window before Parliament rises on December 12.