London mayor Sadiq Khan announces new online hate crime hub for capital

BBC News reports on the launch of a new online hate crime hub by London mayor Sadiq Khan to support online hate crime victims in the capital.

Five specially trained Metropolitan Police officers will make up the hub, which aims to improve police responses to online hate. The dedicated officers will help to identify, prevent and investigate incidents of online abuse, including those perpetrated on Twitter and Facebook.

The police unit is the first of its kind to be launched in the UK and will investigate reports from London-based victims. Once an online hate crime has been reported, officers will work with relevant borough officers to investigate the case, along with providing referrals to specialist victim support services.

The two-year project will cost over £1.7million and is being jointly funded by the Metropolitan Police, the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC) and the Home Office Police Innovation Fund.

Announcing the new initiative, Mayor of London Khan called for “zero tolerance” of online hate, stating that protecting victims from such crimes was his priority. He said the new hub would help officers tackle hate crime more effectively and improve services for victims.

Khan said, “We know hate crime has a huge impact on those who experience it, and that online hate, where abusers mistakenly believe they are hidden behind a screen can be particularly challenging.”

The mayor added, “We need to encourage more victims to report incidents and explore new ways of identifying, preventing and challenging hate crime in all forms.”