More than 7,000 hate crimes logged in first week of controversial new Scottish law

More than 7,000 complaints were reported to Police Scotland in the first week of new hate crime legislation coming into force.

From 1-7 April, the force received 7,152 online hate reports.

Of these, 240 were recorded as hate crimes – 3.3% of all reports – while 30 were logged as non-crime hate incidents, meaning they did not meet the threshold for a criminal offence.

Police Scotland said the vast majority of reports received during this period were anonymous.

These were assessed against the new legislation and no further action is being taken.

The force noted that two reports were raised in relation to alleged hate crime incidents linked to the Rangers and Celtic match on Sunday.

Nearly half of all the complaints made online were made on the first day, the figures showed, before the number of reports slowed later in the week.

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Some 120 of the crimes reported had a racial aggravator attached, while 42 had an aggravator for sexual orientation, 38 for disability, 21 for both age and religion, and eight for transgender identity.

Online hate reports:
• 1 April: 3,419
• 2 April: 1,359
• 3 April: 586
• 4 April: 961
• 5 April: 304
• 6 April: 180
• 7 April: 343

Recorded hate crimes:
• 2019/20: 107
• 2020/21: 97
• 2021/22: 139
• 2022/23: 125
• 2023/24: 99
• 2024/25: 240

Recorded non-crime hate incidents:
• 2019/20: 13
• 2020/21: 7
• 2021/22: 15
• 2022/23: 19
• 2023/24: 18
• 2024/25: 30

The Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act came into force on 1 April and aims to tackle the harm caused by hatred and prejudice, extending protections from abusive behaviour to people on grounds including age, disability, religion, sexual orientation and transgender identity.

The legislation does not include sex as a protected characteristic, as a standalone bill designed to tackle misogyny is expected to be put before the Scottish parliament at a later date.

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Supporters of the new laws insist they will make Scotland more tolerant.

But Harry Potter author JK Rowling has publicly criticised the act, suggesting it erodes free speech as she dared police to arrest her if they believed her online comments were criminal.

Police Scotland later confirmed comments she made online were not recorded as a non-hate crime incident.

A non-crime hate incident is recorded when a complaint does not meet the threshold for a crime but is perceived to be “motivated (wholly or partly) by malice and ill-will towards a social group”, according to Police Scotland guidance.

In a summary released on Wednesday, the force said a total of 80.49% officers have completed training in regard to the new laws.

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A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “This data highlights the substantial increase in the number of online hate reports being received since 1 April.

“This significant demand continues to be managed within our contact centres and so far the impact on frontline policing, our ability to answer calls and respond to those who need our help in communities across Scotland has been minimal.

“All complaints received are reviewed by officers, supported by dedicated hate crime advisers, and dealt with appropriately, whether that is being progressed for further assessment, or closed as they do not meet the criteria under the legislation.”

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