Clare George-Hilley speaks to the Sunday Express

Attacks on clergy ‘are a hate crime’ (Kirst Buchanan, The Sunday Express, 12/1/14)

THUGS who carry out violent attacks on the clergy could face tougher jail terms if they were classified as religious hate crimes, Labour has said.

Diana Johnson, the shadow minister for crime and security, said harsh penalties were necessary to give greater protection to those who do “such valuable work” in communities across Britain.

She said they were on the frontline because they often had an open-door policy that put them “in harm’s way”.

In the Commons last week Parliament’s Second Church Estates Commissioner Sir Tony Baldry promised to consult the Archbishops of York and Canterbury.

He will ask them if they want to see a “religiously motivated hate crime” designation after figures showed that clergy were subjected to at least 200 attacks in the past five years.

The crimes range from low-level assaults to cases where clergy had been stalked by obsessives, beaten in their own churches or bitten by dogs. Ms Johnson’s call for a review also follows the murder of the Rev John Suddards, who was stabbed to death at his vicarage in 2012.

Ms Johnson, MP for Hull North, called on the Government to look at the issue, saying: “I think we all recognise the excellent work the clergy do in our communities and unfortunately at times they do put themselves in harm’s way.

“If any offences are proven to be hate crimes then they carry a heavier punishment than more general offences involving violence.

“I would want to see tougher sentences in such cases, as I believe that it would help act as a deterrent.” The data on the numbers of attacks has been collected in Freedom of Information requests by the social think-tank Parliament Street. The true number could be higher since only 25 police forces, just over half of all forces in England, responded.

Clare George-Hilley, the think-tank’s director, said: “These shocking findings are a mere snapshot of the very real attacks made on Christian leaders across the country, which are all too often overlooked.

“It is totally unacceptable that people who dedicate their lives to supporting communities and improving lives are subjected to harassment, abuse and violent assaults in modern Britain.

“The Government has the opportunity to take steps to classify assaults on clergyman as a religious hate crime, sending a clear signal that faith can be practised freely.”

A Church of England spokesman said: “The men and women who serve as clergy are often the subject of vilification for serving in the name of Christ, and largely bear such comments with good humour.

“However as these figures show they also bear the brunt of more vicious and brutal attacks. The changing nature of the debate around faith, with its increasing intolerance and stridency serves as an unhelpful backdrop to a rise in such attacks.”

Rev Suddards, 59, was murdered in Thornbury, near Bristol, by Stephen Farrow.

Farrow was also later jailed for the murder of Betty Yates, 77, a retired teacher from Bewdley, Worcestershire.

Rev Suddards had spoken from the pulpit about the risks of an open-door policy in order to be there for the vulnerable.

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