Changes from plenary report to adopted text

5. Urges the Member States to support or at least refrain from opposing the adoption of the draft decision;

6. Calls on the current and future Presidencies of the Council of the Union to consider the Commission’s proposal as a priority when drawing up their agenda and defining objectives;

7. Recommends that Article 83 TFEU be amended to make it subject to reinforced qualified majority rather than the current required unanimity; calls for the ‘passerelle clause’ to be activated in this regard;

8. Emphasises that future EU legislation to establish minimum standards concerning the definition of criminal offences and sanctions for hate speech and hate crimes must protect human dignity, seek to prevent harm, ensure equality and combat hatred and intolerance, irrespective of the motivation;

9. Recalls that protection must be universal, with a special focus on targeted persons and vulnerable groups and communities;

10. Recalls that freedom of expression, is a foundational value of democratic societies and should not be unjustifiably restricted; further recalls that any legislation on hate speech and hate crime should be grounded in the principles of necessity and proportionality; underlines that freedom of expression must be exercised within the law and in line with Article 11 of the Charter and should not be exploited as a shield for hate speech and hate crimes;

11. Asks the Commission to consider an open-ended approach whereby the list of grounds of discrimination will not be limited to a closed list in order to effectively combat hate speech and hate crimes motivated by new and changing social dynamics;

12. Stresses that misuses of the internet and the business model of social media platforms, which is based on micro-targeted advertising, contribute to spreading and amplifying hate speech, inciting discrimination and violence and increasing the risk of revictimisation; calls on the Commission and the Member States to ensure the correct implementation of current legislation, such as Regulation (EU) 2022/2065, and to make use of all means and instruments at their disposal to counter the dissemination of hate speech online;

13. Recalls public authorities’ responsibility in preventing, investigating, prosecuting and reporting hate speech and hate crimes and that they must take into account facts that indicate hate when doing so; stresses that future EU legislation should support and promote strong cooperation with civil society, equality bodies and national human rights institutions;

14. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to give particular consideration to minors, including those belonging to vulnerable groups, so as to give them special protection from hate speech and hate crimes, to prevent these incidents, including bullying in schools and cyberbullying, from occurring and to minimise their impact on minors’ development and mental health;

15. Calls on the Commission to ensure that a robust EU legal protection framework is put in place so that victims are effectively protected, in particular those from all vulnerable groups across the EU; emphasises the need to apply an intersectional approach and the importance of adopting comprehensive measures, including providing training to professionals likely to come into contact with victims, as well as measures to ensure protection, safe access to independent justice, specialised support services and reparations for victims; stresses that victims should be able to report their experiences to the competent authorities and be protected; recalls that ensuring the legal protection of victims would create a safe environment that would contribute to enhanced reporting, which is necessary to document hate speech and hate crimes;

16. Calls on the Commission and the Member States, in cooperation with relevant Union bodies and agencies, to establish adequate data collection systems for obtaining solid, comparable, disaggregated and anonymous data on hate incidents, including hate crimes, in accordance with the relevant national legal frameworks and EU data protection legislation, as well as adequate monitoring mechanisms to improve the regular availability, comparability and quality of the data collected and to assess the impact that legislation and policies have on the fight against hate speech and hate crimes;

17. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council and the Commission.