News
New federal legislation targets hate crimes, streamlines charging process
September 25, 2025
Sep. 25, 2025, Ottawa, Ont. – The federal government has introduced new legislation, the Combatting Hate Act, aimed at addressing a rise in hate crimes across Canada. The proposed changes to the Criminal Code will introduce new offences and procedural changes directly relevant to police officers.
The Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, introduced the bill on September 19, 2025, in response to increased incidents of antisemitism, Islamophobia, homophobia and transphobia. Statistics from 2024 show a rise in police-reported hate crimes, with most targeting individuals based on race, ethnicity or religion.
For police, the most significant changes proposed in the Combatting Hate Act include:
Removal of Attorney General consent: The legislation would eliminate the requirement to obtain the Attorney General’s consent before laying hate propaganda charges. This change is designed to allow law enforcement to act more quickly when investigating hate speech.
New hate-motivated offence: The bill would create a specific, standalone offence for hate-motivated crime, which aims to more clearly denounce such conduct.
Codified definition of “hatred”: To assist in investigations and charges, the Criminal Code would be updated to include a codified definition of “hatred” to clarify when conduct meets the threshold of a hate crime.
New obstruction and intimidation offence: It would become a crime to intimidate or obstruct people from accessing places like worship centres, schools, and community centres used by identifiable groups. The legislation targets criminal behaviour but is not intended to impact the freedom to protest peacefully.
New offence for displaying hate/terror symbols: A new offence will make it a crime to wilfully promote hatred by publicly displaying certain terrorism or hate symbols.
The bill does not create “bubble zones” around designated buildings, as these are under provincial and municipal jurisdiction. The government stated that these changes are part of a broader series of justice system reforms planned for the coming months.