Police chief: Allow opinion without the fear of arrest

POLICE should stop recording non-crime hate incidents and “separate the offensive from the criminal”, a watchdog has said.

- By Michael Knowles

Sir Andy Cooke, His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Constabulary, said officers were placed in an “invidious” position by current legislation and that “discretion and common sense don’t always win out in these issues”.

He was speaking ahead of the publication of his organisation’s annual report on the state of policing in England and Wales.