Latest news with #NCHI
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Yahoo
Allison Pearson cleared by press regulator after police complaint
Essex Police is facing criticism after the press regulator threw out a complaint it made about The Telegraph's reporting of an investigation into a social media post by columnist Allison Pearson. The force claimed that a column by Pearson and a news report of a visit made to her home by officers on Remembrance Sunday last year were inaccurate, but the Independent Press Standards Organisation (Ipso) found that the complaint was without foundation. Mark Lewis, Pearson's lawyer, said he was 'bemused as to why the police found it appropriate to file a report to a regulator' in the first place. Pearson was visited by two officers at her home, who told her she was being investigated over a tweet she had posted on X a year earlier – and subsequently deleted – that a complainant claimed had stirred up racial hatred. The Essex force claimed that The Telegraph's reporting was inaccurate because Pearson had said she was told she was being investigated for a non-crime hate incident (NCHI), when the force said she was actually the subject of a criminal investigation. But Ipso said The Telegraph had correctly reported Essex Police's written statement that the inquiry was into a criminal offence, notwithstanding Pearson's belief that she had been told on her doorstep that it was a NCHI. In its ruling, Ipso said that when The Telegraph had put Pearson's claims to the force before publication, its response 'made clear that the police were investigating the matter as a criminal offence [but] the position regarding what the writer had been told during the visit had not been disputed or corrected'. By including Essex Police's response to Pearson's claims, 'care had been taken not to publish inaccurate information', Ipso said. Pearson is suing Essex Police and the Essex Police and Crime Commissioner for damages. Mr Lewis said: 'I welcome this ruling so that we can press ahead with Allison's claim against Essex Police to determine the truth about what happened on that Remembrance Sunday.' Pearson said: 'I am delighted that Ipso has confirmed I was entitled to tell the public what happened to me on the morning of Remembrance Sunday over a tweet deleted a year earlier. I felt it was in the public interest, and still do. 'My legal team will now pursue my case against Essex Police and the Commissioner of Police.' Essex Police has been contacted for comment. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
01-05-2025
- Telegraph
Allison Pearson cleared by press regulator after police complaint
Essex Police is facing criticism after the press regulator threw out its complaint about The Telegraph's reporting of its investigation of Allison Pearson. The force claimed that a column by Pearson and a news report of a visit made to her home by officers on Remembrance Sunday last year were inaccurate, but the Independent Press Standards Organisation (Ipso) found that its complaint was without foundation. Mark Lewis, Pearson's lawyer, said he was 'bemused as to why the police found it appropriate to file a report to a regulator' in the first place. Pearson was visited by two officers at her home, who told her she was being investigated over a tweet she had posted on X one year earlier – and subsequently deleted – that a complainant claimed had stirred up racial hatred. The Essex force claimed that The Telegraph's reporting was inaccurate because Pearson had said she was told she was being investigated for a non-crime hate incident (NCHI), when the force said she was actually the subject of a criminal investigation. But Ipso said The Telegraph had correctly reported Essex Police's written statement that the inquiry was into a criminal offence, notwithstanding Pearson's belief that she had been told on her doorstep that it was a NCHI. In its ruling, Ipso said that when The Telegraph had put Pearson's claims to the force before publication, its response 'made clear that the police were investigating the matter as a criminal offence [but] the position regarding what the writer had been told during the visit had not been disputed or corrected'. By including Essex Police's response to Pearson's claims, 'care had been taken not to publish inaccurate information', Ipso said. Pearson is suing Essex Police and the Essex Police and Crime Commissioner for damages. Mr Lewis said: 'I welcome this ruling so that we can press ahead with Allison's claim against Essex Police to determine the truth about what happened on that Remembrance Sunday.' Pearson said: 'I am delighted that Ipso has confirmed I was entitled to tell the public what happened to me on the morning of Remembrance Sunday over a tweet deleted a year earlier. I felt it was in the public interest, and still do. 'My legal team will now pursue my case against Essex Police and the commissioner of police.'
BBC News
22-04-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Tories push to ban recording of non-crime hate incidents
The recording of non-crime hate incidents by police forces should be scrapped in all but a few cases, the Conservatives have party will try to amend the government's Crime and Policing Bill to ban forces from logging such incidents, except in limited leader Kemi Badenoch said non-crime hate incidents (NCHIs) had "wasted police time chasing ideology and grievance instead of justice".But Policing Minister Diana Johnson said the plan was "unworkable" and "would prevent the police monitoring serious antisemitism and other racist incidents". NCHIs are defined as alleged acts perceived to be motivated by hostility or prejudice towards people with certain characteristics, such as race or are recorded to collect data on "hate incidents that could escalate into more serious harm" but do not amount to a criminal offence, according to Home Office guidance on the recording of NCHIs was first published in 2005, following recommendations by an inquiry into the murder of Stephen marks 33 years since he was murdered in a racially motivated attack in south-east Tories said it was not intentional that their announcement came on the anniversary. NCHIs are not recorded nationally by a single source and not all police forces publish data on the number of incidents they year, the Telegraph newspaper reported that 43 forces in England and Wales had recorded more than 133,000 non-crime hate incidents (NCHI) since 2023, the Conservative government changed the guidance on the recording of new guidelines said officers should consider whether a complaint was "trivial" or if the incident was motivated by "intentional hostility or prejudice". At the time, shadow home secretary Chris Philp was policing minister and in a statement to MPs, he said: "If someone is targeted because of hostility or prejudice towards their race, religion, sexual orientation, disability or transgender identity, and the criteria in the code are met, the incident can and should be recorded as a non-crime hate incident."But the Conservatives under Badenoch's leadership are saying the "use of NCHIs has spiralled out of control".The party said under its plans, only senior officers would be allowed to record NCHIs in clearly defined circumstances, such as the prevention or investigation or actual crimes."The British public want police on the streets - fighting crime and protecting families - not trawling social media for things someone might find offensive," Badenoch said Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer needed to "stand up, show some courage, and back real policing over political correctness".Policing minister Diana Johnson said the Tories had "14 years in charge of policing to set priorities or make policy changes in this area, and failed to do so".She added: "Instead of introducing unworkable and half-baked measures which would prevent the police monitoring serious antisemitism and other racist incidents, the Tories should support the Labour government's prioritisation of neighbourhood policing and serious violence."A Reform UK spokesman said: "The Tories had 14 years in government to do this, instead we saw non-crime hate incidents surge under their watch."Reform are clear, we want to get more bobbies on the beat and put an end to two-tier policing in Britain. Police forces across the country should be focussed on solving real crimes, not policing social media posts."The BBC has approached the Liberal Democrats and the Green Party for comment. Policing and crime are among the issues political parties have been campaigning on ahead of next week's local elections in an interview with the BBC, Badenoch said the Tories were bracing for a tough set of defended her leadership of the Conservatives and insisted she would not be swayed by internal criticism about the amount of policy she had announced so far."It's really important that we take time to get things right - rebuild trust with the public and have a credible offer," Badenoch said. POSTCODE LOOKUP: Check if there is an election in your areaSIMPLE GUIDE: Everything you need to know about the local electionsGET IN TOUCH: Tell us the election issues that matter to youFULL COVERAGE: Catch up on all our election stories
Yahoo
21-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
The police must fight crime, not legal speech
The UK is supposed to be the home of free speech – and a country where the police chase criminals, not law abiding members of the public. So I was horrified, last November, when police officers called on Telegraph journalist Allison Pearson. It was initially believed that they were investigating a so-called non-crime hate incident (or NCHI), based on a comment she'd posted on social media. In my view the police should have only one overriding priority: catching criminals and protecting the public from crime. This emphatically does not extend to acting as the thought police or intervening when someone makes an off colour remark online. People are perfectly entitled to say whatever they like, including things that are offensive, provided that they are not illegal. These boundaries are set out by Parliament in law. It's illegal to incite racial or religious hatred, express support for a proscribed terrorist organisation such as Hamas or to use threats or intimidation to harass someone. But saying that women don't have penises, criticising a religion or simply saying something offensive are not illegal. It follows that people should not be harassed or investigated by the police for any of these things. And yet they are. Police investigated and recorded personal data on around 13,000 NCHIs last year – taking up around 30,000 hours of police time. This personal data – where no crime has been committed – is then potentially disclosable by the police as part of an enhanced criminal record check for years to come. NCHIs were never legislated for by Parliament. They were created through police guidance in the early 2000s in response to the murder of Stephen Lawrence and further entrenched in 2014. The inquiry into Stephen Lawrence's murder found that the previous extreme racism exhibited by his killers should have been identified and his death thereby prevented. Where hatred is such that it is a likely to lead to an actual crime, then there is a good case for police taking an interest – as they would in relation to any intelligence that might be a precursor to criminal activity. But over the years, NCHIs have expanded beyond all recognition and have strayed far from this original intention. Reporting in the Telegraph only yesterday showed that the police now don't even bother to analyse NCHIs for patterns of possible criminality. NCHIs have been investigated and personal details recorded over the most absurdly trivial things. This has included singing a song with the word 'Africa' in the lyrics; commenting on EU citizens working here; a mobility scooter being ridden on a pavement; commenting on the trans debate; an intemperate email sent between family members and even playground arguments between children. It is clear the police are now wasting colossal amounts of their time on NCHIs and infringing our ancient rights to free speech while they do so. In 2023 while in government, Conservatives introduced tighter rules on NCHIs to try to stop this abuse. But a report by HM Inspector of Constabulary in September 2024 found that the new rules were being ignored: the Police had simply carried on as before. I have raised this in Parliament over recent months and it's clear that the Labour government has no real intention of fixing this problem. This is why the Conservatives are now announcing a new policy: NCHIs as a category of incident should be scrapped in their should only investigate or record something where it is likely to be genuinely necessary to prevent or investigate crime. This will free up tens of thousands of hours of police time to catch real criminals and help restore free speech. Instead of policing Twitter, police should spend more time catching burglars and mobile phone thieves. The Conservatives will table this as an amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill currently going through Parliament and will force a vote. Then it will be clear which MPs are willing to stand up for common sense, getting police priorities straight and for free speech – and which MPs are not. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
21-04-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
The police must fight crime, not legal speech
The UK is supposed to be the home of free speech – and a country where the police chase criminals, not law abiding members of the public. So I was horrified, last November, when police officers called on Telegraph journalist Allison Pearson. It was initially believed that they were investigating a so-called non-crime hate incident (or NCHI), based on a comment she'd posted on social media. In my view the police should have only one overriding priority: catching criminals and protecting the public from crime. This emphatically does not extend to acting as the thought police or intervening when someone makes an off colour remark online. People are perfectly entitled to say whatever they like, including things that are offensive, provided that they are not illegal. These boundaries are set out by Parliament in law. It's illegal to incite racial or religious hatred, express support for a proscribed terrorist organisation such as Hamas or to use threats or intimidation to harass someone. But saying that women don't have penises, criticising a religion or simply saying something offensive are not illegal. It follows that people should not be harassed or investigated by the police for any of these things. And yet they are. Police investigated and recorded personal data on around 13,000 NCHIs last year – taking up around 30,000 hours of police time. This personal data – where no crime has been committed – is then potentially disclosable by the police as part of an enhanced criminal record check for years to come. NCHIs were never legislated for by Parliament. They were created through police guidance in the early 2000s in response to the murder of Stephen Lawrence and further entrenched in 2014. The inquiry into Stephen Lawrence's murder found that the previous extreme racism exhibited by his killers should have been identified and his death thereby prevented. Where hatred is such that it is likely to lead to an actual crime, then there is a good case for police taking an interest – as they would in relation to any intelligence that might be a precursor to criminal activity. But over the years, NCHIs have expanded beyond all recognition and have strayed far from this original intention. Reporting in the Telegraph only yesterday showed that the police now don't even bother to analyse NCHIs for patterns of possible criminality. NCHIs have been investigated and personal details recorded over the most absurdly trivial things. This has included singing a song with the word 'Africa' in the lyrics; commenting on EU citizens working here; a mobility scooter being ridden on a pavement; commenting on the trans debate; an intemperate email sent between family members and even playground arguments between children. It is clear the police are now wasting colossal amounts of their time on NCHIs and infringing our ancient rights to free speech while they do so. In 2023 while in government, Conservatives introduced tighter rules on NCHIs to try to stop this abuse. But a report by HM Inspector of Constabulary in September 2024 found that the new rules were being ignored. The Police had simply carried on as before. I have raised this in Parliament over recent months and it's clear that the Labour government has no real intention of fixing this problem. This is why the Conservatives are now announcing a new policy: NCHIs as a category of incident should be scrapped in their entirety. Police should only investigate or record something where it is likely to be genuinely necessary to prevent or investigate crime. This will free up tens of thousands of hours of police time to catch real criminals and help restore free speech. Instead of policing Twitter, police should spend more time catching burglars and mobile phone thieves. The Conservatives will table this as an amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill currently going through Parliament and will force a vote. Then it will be clear which MPs are willing to stand up for common sense, getting police priorities straight and for free speech – and which MPs are not.
