Met police twice as likely to fine black people over lockdown breaches – research

Clear disproportionality revealed in number of police arrests and fines in London

This article titled “Met police twice as likely to fine black people over lockdown breaches – research” was written by Vikram Dodd Police and crime correspondent, for The Guardian on Wednesday 3rd June 2020 11.02 UTC

The Metropolitan police are facing claims of bias after figures showed that officers enforcing the coronavirus lockdown were more than twice as likely to issue fines to black people as to white people.

The Met, which covers London, issued 973 fines between 27 March and 14 May. White people, who make up 59% of London’s population, received 444 fines, or 46% of the total; black people, who make up 12% of London’s population, received 253 fines, or 26%. Asian people, who make up 18% of London’s population, received 23% of the fines.

Analysis for the Guardian by Dr Krisztián Pósch, a lecturer in crime science at University College London, shows a clear disproportionality.

Posch said: “Compared to their share of the population, people from a black ethnic minority were 2.17 times more likely to receive a fine and Asians around 26% more likely. In comparison, whites were 23% less likely to be fined.”

There was also a disproportionality in the number of arrests made for alleged breaches of Covid-19 lockdown rules. White people were under-represented, making up 38% of arrests, while black people were over-represented, making up 31% of arrests.

The Met says it tried to avoid issuing fines, preferring to seek to persuade people to obey the lockdown rules, which limited the reasons why people could leave their homes and how many people could gather together.

The Met, which is Britain’s largest police force, was one of the forces least likely to use enforcement powers, compared with other forces.

The Met said: “In total, more white people received FPNs [fixed penalty notices] or were arrested than other individual ethnic groups. However, when compared with the composition of the resident population, higher proportions of those in black and minority ethnic (BAME) groups were issued with FPNs or arrested across London as a whole.

“The reasons for this are likely to be complex and reflect a range of factors. This includes interactions between the areas subject to significant proactive policing activity targeting crime hotspots and both the variation in the age profile and geographical distribution of ethnic groups in London.”

The fairness of police powers, such as stop and search, is a long-running theme for policing, and for the Met especially.

Leroy Logan, a former Met superintendent, said: “I can’t discount that these figures exhibit a racial bias, because practically everything the Met does has a racial bias. The Met is still institutionally racist and the use of Covid powers is part of this.”

Sgt Janet Hills, the chair of the Met’s black police association, said of the figures: “I struggle to think of why there can be any justification. We deal with intelligence all the time and we know that this pandemic has impacted on everyone.

“It shows that even though we’re going through one of the biggest social upheavals since anyone can remember and having to adjust to a new way of doing things, if you’re black then disproportionality will always remain a constant in our lives.

“There are a number of things that already impact on black communities, like living in a more densely populated areas, which has made adhering to the lockdown slightly more challenging. Our essential workers who may live in these areas have no choice other than to do their part to keep London functioning. But because they are black, because they live in a ‘high crime’ area, they fall into a profile that stereotypes them.”

Katrina Ffrench, of StopWatch, which campaigns for the fair use of police powers, said: “The numbers are clear. Black and Asian people are disproportionately being given fines in comparison to their white peers. This ethnic disparity must be addressed and officers made to account for their decisions.”

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