Dawn Butler was victim of ‘systemic racism’

The police stop of Labour MP Dawn Butler was rooted in systemic racism that is damaging the legitimacy of policing, according to the leader of black police officers.

Inspector Andrew George, the new interim president of the National Black Police Association, has called for urgent reform of “a biased system that views black people as criminals or drug dealers”.

George questioned the grounds for the stop last Sunday in east London, after police said they had wrongly noted the car’s registration plate and believed it to be registered to northern England.