Police stop and search figures up

Black and Asian people are more likely to be stopped by police

Police stop and searches increased by 9% to nearly a million in 2006-7, with black people seven times as likely to be stopped as white people.

Asian people are also more likely to be stopped, and most searches were made for suspected drugs or stolen property.

Ministry of Justice statistics for England and Wales also showed black murder victims were more likely to be shot than Asian or white victims.

Figures for the three years to 2006-7 showed a 3.7% rise in racist incidents.

The rise, shown in police figures, was also reflected in the British Crime Survey.

In an analysis of murder victims the report showed 27% of black victims were shot, compared with 5% of white people killed.

The figures showed 955,000 people were stopped and searched in 2006/7 alone, an increase of 9% and the highest figure since 1998/9.

The reasons for these variations [in stop and search] are multiple and include economic and social factors as well as policing practice and individual behaviour Chief Constable Craig Mackey, Acpo

Asian people were twice as likely to be stopped and searched as white people, according to the report.

The reasons given for most of the stops across all ethnic groups were suspected drugs or stolen property.

A third of stop and searches were carried out by the Metropolitan Police in London.

There was also a large rise in the number of people stopped by the police and asked to account for themselves - up by a third to 1.87m in 2006/7.

Police only recently began recording this category of stops, which have been at the centre of controversy because of the amount of police time taken up by filling out the relevant forms.

In these stops black people were more than twice as likely to be stopped as white people.

The report also showed 11% of murder victims were black, although they only make up 2.8% of the population. Eight per cent were Asian people, who represent 4.7% of the population, and three per cent were from other minority groups.

Red tape

Shadow home secretary Dominic Grieve welcomed the increased use of stop and search, saying it was a "vital tool in the battle against knife crime."

Increasing stop and search is the only sure way of reducing the catalogue of weekly knife crime tragedies Simon Reed, Police Federation

He said the Conservative Party would save 1.2m police hours a year by cutting red tape associated with form-filling for stop and search, and give officers greater discretion on the use of the powers.

"If the government is serious about freeing up our police to combat the scourge of knife crime they would adopt our proposals," he said.

A Home Office spokesman said the police had to have the power to stop someone in a public place and ask them to account for their actions, behaviour, presence in an area, or possession of anything.

“But, as with all police powers, they must be exercised efficiently and, importantly, in support of and with support from the local community."

On the issue of red tape, a spokesman said that there were plans to scrap the form used for "stop and account" although police would still record the encounter - a move already being piloted in some force areas.

THE FIGURES IN DETAIL Statistics on race and the criminal justice system [973 KB] Most computers will open this document automatically, but you may need Adobe Reader Download the reader here

The Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo) said it was working hard to make sure everyone had confidence the system operated fairly and offered "protection to victims of crime regardless of their background".

Chief Constable Craig Mackey, of Cumbria Constabulary, the Acpo lead on stop and search, said it was crucial to have a "visible and responsive policing presence" to reduce crime.

"Figures that point out disparity between black and white with respect to arrest rates, victims of crime and stop and search do not provide any indication of the reasons for significant differences, " he said.

“Acpo supports the proper use of stop and search, while recognising that it continues to attract comment and concern with minority communities.

"The reasons for the rise are varied across forces but include improved use of intelligence to target activity, increased focus on street crime and better briefing and training."

He added it was important to remember searches generally do not occur evenly across any force area but are usually targeted on "hot spots".

"It is becoming increasingly recognised that the reasons for these variations are multiple and include economic and social factors as well as policing practice and individual behaviour," he added.

Simon Reed, vice-chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, said the statistics were "completely meaningless" unless put into context.

"The statistics alone are based on the general population, not the street population," he said.

"They do not include the time of day or whether the increase is as a result of specific initiatives or particular legislation being used.

"I expect to see a further increase in the number of stop and searches in the next year...

"Increasing stop and search is the only sure way of reducing the catalogue of weekly knife crime tragedies."