A WAVE of HATE
Hate crimes are rising at an alarming rate
HATE crimes in England and Wales are soaring, with the number reported to the police more than doubling in five years.
Figures published by the Home Office reveal a total of 94,098 hate crimes were reported to police forces across England and Wales in 2017/18.
That is up from 80,393 the previous year, and is more than double the 42,255 recorded in 2012/13, when modern records began.
There were 100,102 motivating factors recorded alongside offences in 2017/18.
The figure is higher because one offence may have included more than one hate crime.
For example, a person racially abused may also have experienced religious abuse, too.
Religious hate crime in particular has rocketed, with numbers climbing by 40.1% in a single year.
There were 8,336 crimes motivated by religion in 2017/18, up from 5,949 the previous year.
Also on the rise were transgender crimes.
The 1,651 crimes recorded in 2017/18 was a rise of nearly a third (32.3%) from 1,248 in 2016/17.
Crimes against disabled people were up from 5,558 to 7,226, as were sexual orientation hate crimes (up from 9,157 to 11,638).
The 71,251 racial hate crimes in 2017/18 made up nearly threequarters of all motivating factors recorded by police forces.
They had also increased from 62,885 the previous year.
Shadow Home Secretary Diane Abbott said: “The fact that hate crime has more than doubled in the last five years must serve as an urgent wake-up call.
“We must stand up to hatred and discrimination wherever it is found.
“The Tories promised to tackle burning injustices but they are clearly not tackling the injustice of people being attacked simply because of their religion, sexuality, the colour of their skin or their disability.”
The figures come as the government announced a major review of what constitutes a hate crime. It will consider whether to include misogyny and misandry as part of a broader definition.
The Home Secretary
Sajid Javid, said: “Hate crime goes directly against the longstanding British values of unity, tolerance and mutual respect, and I am committed to stamping this sickening behaviour out. “Our refreshed action plan sets out how we will tackle the root causes of prejudice and racism, support hate crime victims and ensure offenders face the full force of the law.”