A ”fuss” in the workplace over a colleague discussing a genital Where’s Wally tattoo and someone sticking an “Adolf Hitler moustache” on their face featured in more than 6,500 non-crime hate incidents (NCHIs) to be scrapped by Labour.
Under current rules, police are expected to record NCHIs where no criminal offence has been committed, but the person reporting it believes the incident is motivated by hostility or prejudice because of race, religion, sexual orientation, disability or transgender identity.
However, this week the government announced they will be ditched, with police to be told to stop recording everyday rows and online spats.
Home secretary Shabana Mahmood said that officers should be “doing what they do best: patrolling our streets, catching criminals, and keeping communities safe”. The move, which comes after a College of Policing and National Police Chiefs’ Council review, will see a tighter definition of what constitutes an incident requiring police involvement.
Last year, freedom of information requests submitted by The Independent showed that while many NCHIs recorded in 2024 clearly met the current guidelines for recording, several appeared to be questionable.
Bedfordshire Police recorded “fuss” in a workplace when a colleague described a Where’s Wally tattoo on his genitals as part of an incident logged that also included the worker calling a cap the complainant was wearing a “durag, which they said “came across as quite racist/stereotypical”.
Cumbria Police recorded an NCHI where two white women sang a song with Africa in the lyrics whilst walking past a Black female in a store, which the complainant perceived to be a hate incident due to race.
The same force logged a man stating on public forums words to the effect of “European Union citizens, steal your jobs without putting money in and take money out without contributing to society”.
And its officers also recorded an NCHI after it was reported that a person had made a sticker to look like an Adolf Hitler moustache, and then stuck it to their face.
Staffordshire Police recorded a Palestine flag sticker being stuck on a shop shelf calling for a boycott of Israeli produce, while North Wales Police logged a neighbour parking closely to the complainant’s son, and also a pentagram symbol spray-painted on a lawn, which was believed to be linked to religious hatred and antisocial behaviour.
The force also recorded an incident where someone had objected to a disabled person riding a mobility scooter on a pavement.
Humberside Police recorded a “smirking” learner vehicle blocking a guide dog’s owner’s right of way on a pavement. The force also logged an incident where a male pupil called a person “Rishi”.
Another NCHI recorded by the force read: “Female sends an email to family members and copies in police email. The email is nothing to do with police and is a long rant aimed at family members and refers to them as ‘pure evil Nazis’.”
Dorset Police recorded an incident summarised as “brown sauce over car”, and two other NCHIs were linked to youth pride events.
Dyfed-Powys Police, in Wales, logged an incident over a person targeted with radio static noise while playing outside in a dispute that started “when they fell out over a chicken”.
The Home Office’s code of practice on non-crime hate incidents was updated in 2023 to raise the threshold for when personal data can be recorded on a NCHI in response to concerns over freedom of speech.
It appeared to reflect a fall in NCHIs recorded by the 29 police forces that responded to the FOI request. A total of 6,684 NCHIs were logged last year in the 12 months ending on 31 October last year – although two forces provided the data on calendar years.
That figure was down from 7,036 the year before, and 8,389 in 2020/21.
Police Scotland recorded the most NCHIs, 1,173, followed by South Yorkshire, 513, and Nottinghamshire, 465.
In 2024, College of Policing chair Lord Herbert of South Downs suggested the need for a “rebalancing” over the public’s response to the incidents, saying police should be able to focus on their job rather than deal with “mere disputes” that damage public confidence.
Watchdog His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services also found that police were recording and attending too many NCHIs, and not consistently applying national guidance.
Critics included Hampshire Police and Crime commissioner Donna Jones, who said NCHIs should be scrapped in their current form. She said police should not be responding to an incident that was not a crime.
Following this week’s announcement to overhaul the NCHIs, the Home Office said it would update the national standard with a narrower definition setting out when police involvement is required.
It said the new threshold will be more closely tied to core police work: preventing and detecting crime, protecting life and property, and maintaining public order.
