British
police said on Friday there had been almost 6,200 hate crimes reported in the
last month following the vote to leave the European Union in a referendum where
immigration had been a key issue.
In
the four weeks from June 16, police forces across the country said 6,193
offences had been reported, with the most common crimes being harassment,
assault and other violence such as verbal abuse or spitting.
Britons
voted on June 23 to exit the EU following bitter and deeply divisive
campaigning in which the control of immigration was one of the main arguments
of those who supported leaving the bloc. Since the result was declared, Muslims
and Eastern Europeans say they have been particularly targeted.
The
latest figures showed there were 3001 offences in the first two weeks of July,
down 6 percent compared to the previous fortnight but still 20 percent higher
than the same period last year.
“Following increases in hate crime
seen after the EU referendum, police forces have been taking a robust approach
to these crimes and we are pleased to see the numbers of incidents have begun
to fall,” Mark Hamilton, the National Police Chiefs’ Council spokesman on
hate crimes.
“Clearly any hate crime is
unacceptable and these numbers are still far too high.”
Critics
of the “Leave” campaign say its focus on immigration helped stoke
xenophobia and racism, an accusation its leaders reject. A week before the
vote, opposition Labour lawmaker Jo Cox, a strong supporter of remaining in the
EU, was shot and stabbed to death in her constituency in northern England.
