Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government, with regard to the case of Miller v College of Policing, what steps they are taking to ensure that police forces in England and Wales pay due regard to freedom of speech in the discharge of their responsibilities in respect of allegations of criminal activity arising from social media communication.

To address the Miller v College of Policing judgment and wider concerns relating to the recording of non-crime hate incidents, the Government has introduced a statutory code of practice on this recording for police officers in England and Wales, as provided for in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022.

The code, which entered into effect on 3 June following Parliamentary approval, introduces a new threshold test that means that personal data may only be included in a non-crime hate incident record if the event is clearly motivated by intentional hostility and there is a risk of escalation causing significant harm or a criminal offence. The code will ensure non-crime hate incidents are only recorded when it is absolutely necessary and proportionate to do so, and not simply because someone is offended.

This Government is confident that the code strikes the right balance between better protecting people’s fundamental right to freedom of expression, whilst enabling the police to continue to protect vulnerable people and communities.

Reported hate crimes will continue to be recorded in line with the College of Policing’s operational guidance on hate crime.