Peers have again defied MPs by inserting a "free speech" defence into the law on homophobic hatred.
Last week the Commons voted to remove the provision first inserted by peers into the Coroners and Justice Bill.
But when the Bill returned to the Lords yesterday they voted 179 to 135, a majority of 44, to maintain the provision in the Bill.
In an attempt to dissuade the Lords from overturning the will of the Commons, Justice minister Lord Bach said that it was time they accepted the will of the elected chamber.
"Members of the other place have said emphatically that a freedom of expression saving is not required. They have now done this not once, not twice, not thrice, but four times," he said.
"Of course, as a revising Chamber, it is perfectly legitimate for this House to ask the other place to think again. What is, I would argue, of questionable legitimacy is to ask the elected House to think again, and again, and again, and again."
"There must come a point where this House, with all its great virtues and its importance, gives way to the House that has been elected by the people of this country."
Conservative peer Lord Waddington – who first added the provision to the Bill - said there was "no dispute" over whether there should be a new offence of stirring up hatred on the grounds of sexual orientation.
"Nobody says this safeguard weakens the offence or alters the safeguard for the offence," he said.
"The question is: what conceivable benefit will accrue from the repeal of a safeguard for free speech which parallels that in the religious hatred offence—and repealing it without even waiting to see whether, in practice, it interferes in any way with proper enforcement of the law?"
And Lord Dear said many police officers had approached him privately.
"They support the amendment proposed, which will allow them to use a discretion and common sense that is often denied to them in contemporary society and to allow them to deal with these situations with a light touch that so many of us, and so many of them, want to see," the former chief constable said.
But former Labour Cabinet minister Lord Smith of Finsbury supported the government.
He said: "I happen to be gay. I happen also to be Christian. I like to believe that I am robust enough to be able to be criticised, to have offensive things sometimes said to me because of my sexual orientation and sometimes to be abused because of my sexual orientation.
"Many other lesbians and gay men face the same sort of difficulty week in, week out.
"The freedom of people to express criticism is something that I would defend to the hilt.
"However, what we also know is that the level of violence against lesbians and gay men because of their sexual orientation is increasing."
He added: "My fear is that if the signal that is sent out is that it is alright to be intolerant, if that's the signal this House sends, then I fear that we will end up seeing more violence and more attacks ... for people simply because of their sexual orientation."
12 Labour peers rebelled against the government to vote in favour of Lord Waddington's amendment.
