Is blasphemy illegal in the United Kingdom?
No blasphemy law
Blasphemy laws have been abolished in England and Wales (2008) and Scotland (2021), with no current criminal penalties for blasphemy.
The United Kingdom is one of 10 countries classified “No blasphemy law” for blasphemy — 18% of the 57 with data.
Source
- Taken from
- Wikipedia: Blasphemy law
- Last checked
- 7 July 2026
- How it was classified
- Classified by a language model from the source text, then checked against hand-verified reference countries.
Nearby countries
- Ireland
- No blasphemy law The blasphemy offence was removed by referendum in 2018 and repealed in 2020.
- Netherlands
- No blasphemy law Netherlands abolished its blasphemy law in the 1960s.
- Denmark
- No blasphemy law Denmark repealed its blasphemy law in 2017, though it was reinstated in 2023.
- France
- No blasphemy law France abolished blasphemy laws in 1881, though religious insult remains punishable under other provisions.
- Germany
- Criminal offense Germany criminalizes religious defamation that disturbs public peace, as seen in the 2006 toilet paper case.
- Switzerland
- Criminal offense Switzerland criminalizes public insult or mockery of religious convictions with monetary penalties.
Other laws in United Kingdom
- Apostasy Laws
- Legal
- Holocaust Denial
- No specific law
- Flag Desecration
- Legal / protected speech
- Conversion Therapy
- Partial ban
Every law in the United Kingdom → · Where is blasphemy illegal? →
A visual reference compiled from Wikipedia’s law-by-country articles, not legal advice. Laws change and summaries simplify — check a primary source before relying on anything here.