NON-crime hate incidents are set to be scrapped in new plans rolled out by police chiefs, a report claims.
It comes as top cop bosses feel NCHIs are not “fit for purpose” and should be replaced with a “common sense” system.
An NCHI is defined as “an incident or alleged incident which involves or is alleged to involve an act by a person which is perceived by a person to be motivated – wholly or partly – by hostility or prejudice towards persons with a particular characteristic.”
While it is not a criminal offence, an NCHI can stay on records and be flagged during background checks.
The move to see NCHIs axed reflects fears that freedom of speech is at risk – while officers are also being taken away from dealing with serious crimes.
NCHI’s recorded this year included a nine-year-old who called a fellow primary school pupil a “re****”, two secondary schoolgirls who said another student smelt “like fish”, and “transphobic” tweets about fish.
Under new plans, cops will only record the most serious anti-social behaviour offences, according to the Telegraph.
Police forces would also be instructed not to log “hate” incidents on crime databases but refer to them as “intelligence” reports.
The latest plans will be presented to Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood next month and published by the College of Policing and National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC).
Lord Herbert, the chairman of the College of Policing, told The Telegraph: “NCHIs will go as a concept. That system will be scrapped and replaced with a completely different system.
“There will be no recording of anything like it on crime databases. Instead, only the most serious category of what will be treated as anti-social behaviour will be recorded. It’s a sea change.”
Lord Herbert said the current system, which dates back to 1999, was no longer “fit for purpose”.
NCHIs were originally introduced in the wake of the Macpherson Inquiry into Stephen Lawrence’s murder.
The new system will be managed by “common sense” check lists according to Lord Herbert.
It will help determine whether the anti-social behaviour could lead to serious harm within communities, such as incidents of antisemitism.
The new guidance will see police call handlers direct reports to “other agencies” if they’re “not appropriate for police to deal with”.
They will have to consider five principles before deciding whether to log an incident on intelligence databases: whether the response is Proportionate, whether the incident is Legal, and how Accountable, Necessary and Ethical any approach should be.
An amendment abolishing NCHIs is expected to be put to a vote in the Lords in February or March by Lord Hogan-Howe, a former Met Commissioner, and Lord Young, the founder of the Free Speech Union.
Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley is expected to back the plans after instructing his force to stop investigating NCHI’s after Father Ted co-creator Graham Linehan’s arrest.
And, the police watchdog said earlier this year how cops should separate “the offensive from the criminal” and stop recording non-crime hate incidents.
Sir Andy Cooke, His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Constabulary, insisted forces need to get the basics right and focus on the issues that matter to the public.
He said: “We need, at times, to allow people to speak openly without the fear their opinion will put them on the wrong side of the law.”
Sir Andy, ex-chief constable of Merseyside, said the focus of law enforcement must return to neighbourhood policing.
It came after Father Ted writer Graham Linehan, 57, was arrested by armed cops over posts he made about trans issues.
He has vowed to sue the Met Police and seek asylum in the US as he no longer feels safe in Britain.
Graham Linehan: ‘A victory for common sense’
FATHER Ted co-creator Graham Linehan slammed “dangerous men who bully women and girls” after he was cleared of harassing a trans teen in November.
The 57-year-old free speech advocate was accused of a social media campaign against Sophia Brooks.
Footage showed him branding the trans activist an “incel” and “groomer” after they asked why he referred to teens as “domestic terrorists”.
Sophia also claimed Linehan called them a “sissy porn-watching scumbag” but he claimed his life had been “made hell” by trans activists.
Linehan has now been found not guilty of harassing the activist on social media between October 11 and October 27 last year.
He was convicted of a charge of criminal damage after throwing Sophia’s mobile phone on October 19 last year.
Linehan was slapped with a £1,350 court bill but he is expected to appeal against his criminal damage conviction.
He vowed outside to court to keep standing up for women and girls and said he was “pleased” by the verdict.
Linehan added: “The judge commented that the complainant, a well-known trans activist, was not truthful.
“There are a group of dangerous men who are determined to bully women and girls, and to misuse the courts and police in furtherance of a misogynistic agenda.
“I’m proud to have stood up to them and I will continue to do so.”
He also thanked the Free Speech union for their “unwavering support” and protecting those who speak out against “dangerous activists”.
The verdict comes after a probe was also dropped into the writer after he was arrested on suspicion of inciting violence in posts on X.
Linehan had shared trans critical tweets – leading to armed officers ambushing him at Heathrow Airport in September.
He was later taken to hospital because the stress caused his blood pressure to skyrocket and has since vowed to sue the police.
Backlash over the arrest triggered Met boss Sir Mark Rowley to rip up his policy on non-crime hate incidents, where people are probed despite no crime being committed.
