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Home » News Centre » Press Releases » CPS decision on article by Robert Kilroy-Silk

CPS decision on article by Robert Kilroy-Silk

01/07/2004

The Crown Prosecution Service has advised the Metropolitan Police that no action be taken against Mr Robert Kilroy-Silk over an article published in the Sunday Express newspaper in January 2004.

The Metropolitan Police asked the Crown Prosecution Service for advice as to whether the contents of that article amounted to offences under the Public Order Act 1986. After careful consideration the CPS has decided that the content of the article did not constitute any offence under the act. Cases relating to incitement to racial hatred are referred the Casework Directorate in CPS Headquarters. This reflects the seriousness with which the CPS considers these cases.

Sue Taylor, Head of Division at Casework Directorate said:

" I acknowledge that many people found this article shocking and abusive and were deeply insulted by it. We took their concerns very seriously and spent some time considering in depth whether the article committed a criminal offence. As part of that process we asked senior independent counsel for advice. But however offensive the material might be we are constrained by law as to what we can and cannot prosecute and in this case we have had to advise the police that a criminal offence has not been committed."

On 4 January 2004 the Sunday Express published an article written by Mr Kilroy-Silk. It was entitled 'We Owe Arabs Nothing' and the content referred to 'Arabs' and 'Arab countries'. The same article had also been published in April 2003.

In order to succeed in any prosecution under section 18 of the Public Order Act the CPS would have to demonstrate that Mr Kilroy-Silk intended to stir up racial hatred by the publication of the article or that his action was likely to stir up racial hatred. 'Likely' means something stronger than 'liable to'. The prosecution has to show that the probable effect of the article was to create extreme dislike of a particular group.

Stirring up racial hatred means more than causing hatred. It must be a hatred that manifests itself in such a way that public order might be affected. The concept of hatred is a strong one, going beyond the creation of dislike or racial tension.

Sue Taylor said:

"We do not think that there is a reasonably good prospect of establishing that Mr Kilroy-Silk intended to stir up racial hatred by the publication of the article .We are aware that he would have a strong argument to say that this was not his purpose, but rather that he intended to criticise various regimes.

Neither do we think that there is a reasonably good prospect of establishing that the article was likely to stir up racial hatred. We reach this conclusion because when the article was first published in April 2003 it apparently passed into the public domain without creating any official complaint. We accept that those who might have been incited to racial hatred are hardly likely to complain, but the absence of any complaint indicates that those who read it also formed the view that Mr Kilroy-Silk was entitled to air his views."

The CPS also considered whether any offence under section 5 of the Public Order Act 1986 had been committed.

Referring to this section of the Act, Sue Taylor said:

"We consider that the article contains a number of statements and related implications, which are insulting, and abusive, to Arab people, and not just criticisms of Arab states but we do not consider that the article could be described as threatening. It is clear from correspondence that we have seen that many people found this article shocking, distressing and abusive and were deeply insulted by it. However, we cannot show, as the law requires, that Mr Kilroy-Silk intended his action to be insulting or that he was aware that it may be insulting, we are aware that he would have a strong argument to say that this was not his purpose, but rather that he intended to criticise various regimes."

  1. Media enquiries to CPS Headquarters 020 7710 6088.
  2. The CPS Policy on prosecuting cases of racist and religious crime can be found on our website in the Publications section.
  3. Public Order Act 1986

    Section 17 defines racial hatred as being " hatred against a group of persons ... defined by reference to colour, race, nationality (including citizenship) or ethnic or national origins."

    Section 18 (1) states that "A person who uses threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour, or displays any written material which is threatening, abusive or insulting, is guilty of an offence if (a) he intends thereby to stir up racial hatred, or (b) having regard to all the circumstances racial hatred is likely to be stirred up thereby."

    Section 18 (b), is subject to section 18 (5) which states that " a person who is not shown to have intended to stir up racial hatred is not guilty of an offence under this section if he did not intend his words or behaviour or the written material to be, and was not aware that it might be, threatening abusive or insulting"

    Section 5 (1) states that a person is guilty of an offence if he:
    "Uses threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour, or disorderly behaviour, or displays any writing, sign or visible representation which is threatening, abusive or insulting, within the hearing or sight of a person likely to be caused harassment, alarm or distress thereby"

    Section 6 (4) states that "a person is guilty of an offence under section 5 only if he intends his words or behaviour or the writing, sign or other visible representation, to be threatening, abusive or insulting or is aware that it may be threatening, abusive or insulting"