Disinformation could still spread regarding suspects arrested under new guidance for police, the policing minister has said.
Police forces have been told to consider disclosing suspects’ ethnicity and nationality to the public when they are charged in high-profile and sensitive cases.
It comes after authorities were accused of covering up offences carried out by asylum seekers, and in the wake of riots following the Southport murders, which were partly fuelled by social media disinformation.
Asked whether withholding a suspect’s nationality and ethnicity until they are charged, rather than when they are arrested, means disinformation could still spread as it did following the Southport murders, Dame Diana Johnson agreed.
The National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) guidance reaffirms that it is not the role or responsibility of the police to verify a suspect’s immigration status, and the Home Office should decide if it is appropriate in all the circumstances to confirm immigration status.
