UK policing should shift focus from non-crime hate incidents to crimes that 'matter most to the public', police chief says

Sir Andy Marsh, chief executive of the College of Policing, called on police forces in England and Wales to refocus on investigating offences that matter most to the public and to reform the handling of non-crime hate incidents, saying current practice generates unnecessary bureaucracy and public friction.

Speaking on Sept. 16 at the Police Superintendents' Association annual conference in Stratford-upon-Avon, Marsh said officers were devoting time to matters the public would not expect the police to prioritise and urged a "reset" of policing priorities. "If you went into any of your forces and scooped out 100 crimes, and thought: 'Is this what the police do?' I think you'd be surprised and disappointed on behalf of the public about some of the things that we're applying our minds to," he said.

Marsh singled out the policing of non-crime hate incidents — records that can be created when behaviour or speech causes alarm or distress but does not amount to a criminal offence — as an area that needed particular attention. He said the concept was devised in an "analog era" when a form was filled in and a label applied, and that it had not adapted well to a digital age in which social media activity can generate reports that do not presage serious harm.

"The purpose of that law was to identify incidents that might be foretellers of serious harm, crime or violence and do something about it. That is the job of the police," Marsh said, adding that the current approach created "a great deal of public concern" and community friction. He said policy needed reform to remove intrusive and unnecessary involvement in people's lives, and suggested moving away from the current non-crime hate incident regime "and do it differently."

Marsh declined to endorse the phrase "two-tier policing" — a political criticism that the police treat some offences more or less seriously than others — but acknowledged "inconsistency" among forces in how they handle crime. "I have felt for a long time that policy needs reform," he said.

The comments follow other senior calls for change. Sir Andy Cooke, His Majesty's Chief Inspector of Constabulary, has urged forces to "separate the offensive from the criminal" and to prioritise crimes that most affect people’s safety and wellbeing. Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley has also publicly called for reforms to how non-crime reports are managed.

The debate over policing of non-criminal conduct was reignited this month after the arrest of comedy writer Graham Linehan at Heathrow Airport by armed officers over social media posts about transgender issues. Linehan's detention and wider debate about social media complaints have intensified scrutiny of how police assess and record incidents that do not meet the threshold for criminal prosecution.

Home Office ministers have signalled planned legislative and policy changes. A White Paper, expected later this year, will outline proposals for police reform, including recommendations about investigative priorities and how forces record and respond to non-crime incidents. Marsh said such reforms should aim to reduce bureaucracy and intrusive interventions while ensuring police can identify genuine early warnings of serious harm.

Police leaders at the conference stressed the need for clearer national guidance so that responses are consistent across regional forces. Marsh said reform should be aimed at restoring public trust by concentrating resources on preventing and solving crime that most affects communities, rather than routine involvement in non-criminal online disputes.

Any change to the non-crime hate incident framework would require careful calibration, according to policing officials, to balance free expression, community safety and the role of the police in safeguarding against escalation to criminal behaviour. Ministers, inspectorates and police leaders are expected to set out more detailed proposals in the coming months as part of the wider review of policing priorities and practices.