Non-crime hate incidents should be scrapped, police leaders say

"Non-crime hate incidents (NCHIs) should be scrapped as they are no longer fit for purpose, police leaders will recommend to the home secretary. The National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) and College of Policing will publish a review into public order and hate crime laws next month, in which they will call for NCHIs to be replaced with a new common sense system, as reported by The Telegraph."

"NCHIs are perceived to be motivated by hostility or prejudice towards certain characteristics, such as race or gender, but do not meet the threshold of a criminal offence. They are currently recorded to collect data on "hate incidents that could escalate into more serious harm". The Metropolitan Police said in October that it would no longer investigate NCHIs."

"About the review, Lord Herbert of South Downs, chairman of the College of Policing, told The Telegraph that non-crime hate incidents would go as a concept, with the system, which dates back to 1999, no longer fit for purpose. He also told BBC Radio Four's Today programme that the rise of social media in the years since NCHIs were introduced has led the police to monitor mere disputes online."

"Lord Herbert described recent headlines about NCHIs as "awkward and very damaging" for police forces. He added: "It was quite clear that the whole regime needed looking at, that there was a perception that the police were being drawn into matters that they shouldn't have been. Rather than logging hate incidents on a crime database, the plan would treat them as intelligence reports, with officers given a common sense checklist to use before taking action."

The National Police Chiefs' Council and College of Policing will recommend scrapping non-crime hate incidents and replacing them with a common-sense system. NCHIs are recorded when perceived hostility or prejudice exists but do not meet the threshold for criminal offences; records aim to identify incidents that could escalate into more serious harm. The Metropolitan Police will no longer investigate NCHIs. College of Policing leadership said the NCHI regime, established in 1999, is no longer fit for purpose and that social media has led police to monitor mere disputes online. The proposed approach would treat such reports as intelligence, give officers a checklist before acting, and reserve formal anti-social behaviour records for only the most serious cases.

Read at www.independent.co.uk