The Racial and Religious Hatred Bill is about creating a new criminal offence (with a maximum penalty of 7 years in jail) of 'stirring up hatred against people on religious grounds'. It does this by adding new parts to an older law: the Public Order Act 1986.

If a strong grass roots movement of opposition to the Bill is made known to politicians, this will undoubtedly have an impact. Creating such a movement of opposition should not be difficult and we must not stop until all the Christians in this nation are aware of the implications of this Bill for the freedom to preach the Gospel. All Christians should be given the opportunity to stand up against the Bill. It is the responsibility of those in positions of leadership and authority to inform their congregations and members of the facts concerning the Bill, and allow those people to make up their minds as to its implications for preaching the gospel. A section on how to lobby MPs and Peers and which ones to target is set out in this article. A sustained campaign over the next year visiting MPs' surgeries will be highly effective and could make the difference.

The prayer rally in Trafalgar Square on the 8th October and the rally in Westminster on the 11th October as well as the possible petition are of particular relevance as they are an outlet where Christians throughout the country can make their own views known. Again, Christian leaders are in a unique position in being able to offer and publicise these events to all believers and thereby give them a chance to stand up for the truth.

Beyond this, in terms of the tactics for fighting the Bill in Parliament, details can be left to those Christian bodies involved specifically in politics. Different Christian groups will have slightly differing views as to the best approach. We must each be faithful to God within the situation in which we find ourselves.

Methods for Lobbying Peers

Since the next stage of the Religious Hatred Bill is the second reading in the House of Lords, it is sensible to concentrate on lobbying peers in order to convince them to back amendments to the Bill at this stage (so that it gets sent back to the Commons), or to vote against the Bill if no amendments are forthcoming in the Lords.

To this end, there are two principal approaches:

1) Visiting Peers

Those Christian leaders who have friends or acquaintances in the House of Lords should arrange to meet with them to explain the meaning of the Religious Hatred Bill to them and to highlight the level of concern it has caused across the country. This is probably the most persuasive and direct way of influencing peers. Equally, church leaders and heads of other Christian organisations may want to exhort their congregations and membership to visit peers known personally to such individuals. The Lawyers' Christian Fellowship briefing note can again be used as a guide as to how to present the Christian view of the Bill.

2) Writing to Peers

Although members of the House of Lords do not have constituencies as such, they are still based, through residence, in certain localities. Therefore it makes sense to find out who your 'local' peer is and then to contact them by writing or by e-mail, to explain the concerns about the Religious Hatred Bill. Having the link of living close by will be a good starting point for the correspondence. Again the LCF Briefing Note can be used as a template for the contents of any letter.

In order to help you find the most appropriate peer to write to there is an alphabetical list of members of the House of Lords on the Parliament website.

Once you have located your peer, contact details for the Lords can be found on the Parliament website, or letters can be sent via Westminster to:

House of Lords
London
SW1A 0PW

The same website can be used for advice on how to use the correct title for a peer when writing to them.