Free speech victory as police to stop recording non-crime hate incidents

Every police force will be ordered to stop recording non-crime hate incidents in a huge win for free speech campaigners. A review by the College of Policing and the National Police Chiefs' Council will advise Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood that people "were being made to feel like suspects when no crime had been committed".

Police chiefs insist "we're not here to deal with differences of opinion or online fallings out". And a report submitted to policing minister Sarah Jones said the recording of non-crime hate incidents should be dropped. Tom Harding, the police college's director of operational standards, said: "We will remove NCHIs in their current form.

"We're not here to deal with differences of opinion or online fallings out - policing's job is to protect people from harm.

"At the moment, anything that causes a member of the public concern must be recorded - that's vast. It's gone far beyond policing's core responsibilities.

"We found confusing, inconsistent practice across the country. People were being made to feel like suspects when no crime had been committed. Non-crime hate incidents were being logged on crime systems, which made people feel like they were being treated as criminals - that was never the intention.

"We think the current definition has drifted too far from what policing is here to do."

It followed Scotland Yard's announcement that it is no longer investigating non-crime hate incidents.

The Met faced widespread fury after Father Ted creator Graham Linehan was arrested over social media posts about transgender issues.

The 57-year-old Irish comedy writer was arrested at Heathrow after flying in from Arizona in September, on suspicion of inciting violence over three posts he had made on X.

The arrest sparked controversy, with Conservative politicians and Harry Potter author JK Rowling among those who voiced their outrage.

But the case was dropped.

While the initial arrest was made by officers who the Met said had reasonable grounds to believe an offence had been committed under the Public Order Act, the investigation later turned into looking at a non-crime hate incident.

Non-crime hate incidents do not count as crimes but are perceived to be motivated by hostility or prejudice towards certain characteristics such as race or gender.

A Downing Street spokesman said police forces will "get the clarity they need to keep our streets safe" when the review findings are published.

He said: "The police should focus on tackling real crime and policing the streets.

"The Home Secretary has asked that this review be completed at pace, working with the National Police Chiefs Council and the College of Policing.

"We look forward to receiving its findings as soon as possible, so that the other forces get the clarity they need to keep our streets safe."

He said the Government will "always work with police chiefs to make sure criminal law and guidance reflects the common-sense approach we all want to see in policing".

Following Linehan's arrest in September, Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said officers were in "an impossible position" when dealing with statements made online.

Gavin Stephens, chairman of the National Police Chiefs' Council, said: "We are reviewing the police approach to dealing with non-crime hate incidents because the current system is not working like it should.

"Police officers are operating in an increasingly polarised world with regulations that expect them to referee societal debate rather than focus on real-world threat and risk.

"We continue to work hard with the College of Policing to progress our review into non-crime hate incidents and will share its findings when complete.

"It is vital that we continue to record and gather intelligence around hate and monitor community tensions, as we remain vigilant to precursors to violence and other more serious crimes."