{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/hate-crime-and-public-order-scotland-act-2021/section-1",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/hate-crime-and-public-order-scotland-act-2021/section-1.json",
  "legislation": "asp/2021/14",
  "legislation_title": "Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/hate-crime-and-public-order-scotland-act-2021",
  "path": "section/1",
  "kind": "section",
  "number": "1",
  "heading": "Aggravation of offences by prejudice",
  "text": "(1) An offence is aggravated by prejudice if—\n(a) where there is a specific victim of the offence—\n(i) at the time of committing the offence, or immediately before or after doing so, the offender demonstrates malice and ill-will towards the victim, and\n(ii) the malice and ill-will is based on the victim's membership or presumed membership of a group defined by reference to a characteristic mentioned in subsection (2), or\n(b) whether or not there is a specific victim of the offence, the offence is motivated (wholly or partly) by malice and ill-will towards a group of persons based on the group being defined by reference to a characteristic mentioned in subsection (2).\n(2) The characteristics are—\n(a) age,\n(b) disability,\n(c) race, colour, nationality (including citizenship), or ethnic or national origins,\n(d) religion or, in the case of a social or cultural group, perceived religious affiliation,\n(e) sexual orientation,\n(f) transgender identity,\n(g) variations in sex characteristics.\n(3) It is immaterial whether or not the offender's malice and ill-will is also based (to any extent) on any other factor.\n(4) Evidence from a single source is sufficient to prove that an offence is aggravated by prejudice.\n(5) In this section—\n“membership”, in relation to a group, includes association with members of that group,\n“presumed” means presumed by the offender.",
  "extent": null,
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [
    {
      "type": "I",
      "label": "I1",
      "text": "S. 1 in force at 1.4.2024 by S.S.I. 2024/82, reg. 2 (with reg. 3)"
    }
  ],
  "outstanding_effects": [
    {
      "type": "inserted",
      "affecting": "ssi/2026/150",
      "affecting_title": "The Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021 (Characteristic of Sex) (Amendment and Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2026"
    }
  ],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2021/14/section/1",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-10-29T20:12:31.262790+00:00"
  },
  "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
}