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Islamic Human Rights Commission
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7 February 2008

PRESS RELEASE: UK Proposed police reforms

IHRC is deeply concerned about the proposed relaxation of the stop and search rules. The review will propose that police use BlackBerry mobile devices to electronically transmit brief stop records to police stations with some reference to the ethnicity of those stopped.

IHRC welcomes the use of electronic devices, which will save valuable time. IHRC calls on the Government to use this opportunity to build upon current standards, and to create a uniform national format for stop and search forms to replace the current format which differs from one area to another. IHRC calls on the Government to look at the whole aspect of the effectiveness of stop and search procedures and the disproportionality which has become inherent in it.

IHRC calls attention to the fact that disproportionality is a real and increasing problem throughout the Criminal Justice System:

Black and Asian people are now 7 times more likely to be stopped than white people
White people aged 10 -25 report higher offending rates than Black and Asian People
Black People are three times more likely to be arrested than white people
White people are more likely to be given unconditional bail than young black offenders
12% of young black offenders appearing in court are sentenced to custody compared to 6% of white young offenders.*

IHRC Chairman, Massoud Shadjareh, stated:

“With new technology must come a new commitment to tackle this apparent anomaly. IHRC calls on the Home Office to genuinely tackle disproportionality, which is unfair, counter productive and alienating.”

For more information please contact the Press Office on (+44) 20 8904 4222 or (+44) 7958 522196 or email info@ihrc.org.

Notes to Editors

* Statistics from National Policing Improvement Agency, Nov 2007.

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IHRC is an NGO in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations.

Islamic Human Rights Commission
PO Box 598
Wembley
HA9 7XH
United Kingdom

Telephone (+44) 20 8904 4222
Fax (+44) 20 8904 5183
Email: info@ihrc.org
Web: www.ihrc.org