Rise in racially and religiously aggravated offences in North Yorkshire and Humberside

The data's been published by the Home Office

Author: Karen Liu with contributions from Ian Jones, PAPublished 23rd Jun 2022

There has been a rise in racially and religiously aggravated offences in North Yorkshire and Humberside.

The analysis has been compiled by the PA news agency from data published by the Home Office.

The list reads, from left to right: name of police force; the number of racially or religiously aggravated offences recorded in 2020; the number recorded in 2021; the percentage year-on-year change.

Humberside: 924; 971; 5%

North Yorkshire: 410; 515; 26%

Humberside Police said: "Historically, hate crimes have not been reported to us and, as such, we have not been able to pursue those who commit them.

"Whilst nobody should have to live with the fear and anxiety that hate crimes cause, we are reassured to know that our communities are reporting these incidents more frequently so we can deal with this unacceptable behaviour.

"Hate crimes have a significant and long-lasting impact on not just victims, but their family, friends and communities too.

"Hate crimes happen, and we urge people to report them so that we can follow them up. We will not tolerate people who disrupt our communities with hatred and prejudice.

"If you are verbally or physically abused, have your property damaged or are harmed or targeted in any other way, and you perceive those actions to be motivated by your race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity, we are urging you to come forward in confidence to make a report.

"To report a hate crime, visit www.humberside.police.uk or the national hate crime website, call us on 999 in an emergency, or 101 for non-emergencies."

In England and Wales, the reaction to England's defeat at the Euro football championships likely to have contributed to the increase.

The easing of Covid-19 restrictions is another factor named by forces as having led to the rise in offences, along with improved recording of hate crimes.

A total of 76,884 racially and religiously aggravated offences were recorded in 2021, up 15% from 66,742 in 2020.

The number of offences has been on an upwards trend since 2013, the first calendar year for which comparable data is available.

But this is the biggest percentage jump since 2017, which saw a 16% rise in offences fuelled by reaction to terrorist attacks in London and Manchester.

Independent charity Victim Support said the figures for 2021 in England and Wales were "seriously concerning" and fit a pattern for "spikes in hate crime linked to world events", while the Equality and Human Rights Commission warned that "more still needs to be done to improve the quality of support for victims", including "effective hate crime training" for police forces.

The National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) said all forms of hate crime are "completely unacceptable - police will take, and do take, all reports seriously and we will do everything we can to investigate".

It shows that of the 44 forces in England and Wales, 39 reported a rise in racially and religiously aggravated offences from 2020 to 2021, while 34 forces saw numbers last year reach a new high.

The offences - all of which are defined as hate crimes - include racially or religiously aggravated assault, harassment and criminal damage.

NPCC lead for hate crime, Deputy Chief Constable Mark Hamilton, said: "Everyone has the right to live their lives without fear of being attacked for who they are, either physically or verbally.

"We strongly encourage anyone who thinks they may have experienced any hate crime to report it to the police. Our officers are highly trained, will treat everyone with respect and dignity and handle cases sensitively. We ask that victims come to us as soon as possible after an offence has been committed so we can begin our investigation as early as possible."