Crack down on racist hate speech, UN tells UK

The United Nations has urged the UK to take action to curb racist hate speech, including by politicians, in a report published on Friday.

It noted the persistence of hate speech published in mainstream media, online, and spread by politicians and public figures.

The report did not single out specific politicians or instances, but urged authorities to “formally and publicly reject and condemn hate speech and the dissemination of racist ideas”.

The UN said it was “particularly concerned” about racist acts and violence by “far-right and white supremacist” groups, such as during recent riots across England and Northern Ireland fueled by misinformation and anti-immigrant sentiment.

The BBC has reached out to the Minister for Women and Equalities for comment.

The UN’s recommendations came from its four-year review of the UK’s record on tackling racial discrimination – a requirement for countries signed on to international conventions.

The UN Committee for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination urged the UK to address alleged racial profiling by police and discrimination in criminal justice, housing, schools and healthcare.

It also said it was especially concerned by the persistence and in some cases “sharp increase” of hate crimes and hate speech in the UK.

The committee highlighted what they said were recurring racist acts and violence against minorities, asylum seekers and refugees, including during riots in late July and early August.

The UN characterized authorities as having taken “swift action” in response.

At least 466 people have been charged with crimes related to the riots, some of which targeted mosques and hotels housing asylum seekers.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the time said the riots were the “actions of a tiny, mindless minority” and condemned “far-right hatred”.

The UN recommended that the UK prevent racist hate crimes by encouraging reporting to police, prosecuting perpetrators, and strengthening measures to combat hate speech on social media, among other measures.

Much of the evidence considered by the committee would have been collected before the general election and the riots.

The UN said the UK had taken some legislative steps in recent years, noting that Scotland brought in a hate crime strategy and Wales introduced an action plan to eliminate racism.

However, the global body remained about the level of hate crimes and xenophobic speech targeting ethnic minorities, specifically Gypsies, Roma, Travelers, people of African, Asian or Arab descent, Jews, Muslims and Hindus, as well as migrants, refugees and asylum seekers.

The committee urged the UK to hold journalists and news organizations accountable for how they describe minority communities and when they publish content that incites hatred or fuels xenophobic attitudes.

The review also urged the UK to improve the situation for migrants and refugees and tackle racial discrimination in other areas such as policing.

Improvements were needed across the criminal justice system for people to feel safe enough to report racist incidents and stamp out the continued problem of racial profiling, the UN said.

The global body said it was particularly concerned about the high number of strip searches of children, especially of African descent, and the increased presence of police at schools with large non-white populations.

The report called for an independent body to investigate allegations of racial profiling by police, saying stop and search had a disproportionate impact on ethnic minorities, particularly young men and children of African and Asian descent.

The UN said ethnic minorities still suffered discrimination across a broad range of areas, including housing, schooling and access to healthcare.

In UK schools, pupils remained subject to racially-motivated bullying and prejudice – particularly if they were of African descent or from Gypsy, Roma or Traveler communities.

All UN member states are reviewed regularly by the UN to assess their compliance with international conventions.

Belarus, Bosnia, Iran, Pakistan, and Venezuela were the other countries reviewed this session.