Politicians should tone down their language to avoid inciting hatred ahead of the European Elections this week, the country's most senior police officer on hate crimes has warned. The National Police Chiefs' Council lead for hate crime, Mark Hamilton, said the mood at the moment in 'incredibly febrile' and wants MEP candidates and party leaders to be mindful of their language. Yesterday, violent clashes broke out at a Tommy Robinson campaign as masked supporters clashed with crowds shouting 'racist scum'. Mr Hamilton's comments reflect an ongoing rise in the number of reported hate crime incidents since the Brexit vote in June 2016. There were a reported 94,000 hate crime offences committed in England and Wales in the year up to March 2018, an increase of 17 per cent on the previous year.

Source: Daily Mail May 19, 2019 15:56 UTC