The number of cases of homophobic and transphobic hate crimes that have resulted in a criminal charge in London has dropped over the last year, new data uncovered by the Liberal Democrats shows.

The data shows that the percentage of cases resulting in a charge for homophobia has dropped from 16.5% to 10.8% between 2022-2023. Meanwhile, the percentage of cases of transphobia resulting in a charge over the last year is just 3.2%, down from 6.3% the year prior. 

The data shows that homophobic incidents reported to the police in the capital have risen by 11% from 3,187 to 3,565 in the last three years but charges brought by the police decreased by 38% during the same period.

Meanwhile, transphobic incidents across London have increased by 41% from 353 a year to 499 while charges by the Met also dropped by 38%.

Overall, 8 per cent of reported hate crimes of all types in 2023 resulted in a charge, compared to 12.7 per cent three years earlier.

The Liberal Democrats have urged the Mayor of London to do more to ensure that the Met tackles homophobic and transphobic hate crime and treats it as a priority and have also called on the UK Government to do more at a national level to tackle the issue, stating that divisive language over recent times has often enflamed hate crime rather than helped to tackle it.

Commenting Liberal Democrat London Assembly Member & Police and Crime Spokesperson Caroline Pidgeon said:

“Homophobic and transphobic crime is a serious crime. Its impact leaves victims traumatised and feeling unsafe simply for being who they are.

“It is extremely worrying that not only has the number of incidents of homophobic and transphobic crime surged in recent years but simultaneously the number of charges by the Met across London has actually fallen.

“We need the Met, the Mayor of London and the UK Government to work together to tackle this issue. London is and should always be an open and welcoming city for everyone, no matter who you are or who you love.

“The Conservative Government has implemented brutal cuts to London’s police since 2015, with the number of PCSOs on London’s streets having fallen by 32 per cent. We need to see more bobbies back on the beat to deter this sort of crime. 

“But we also need to see some high-level prosecutions demonstrating that homophobia or transphobia, whatever form it takes, is never acceptable. The current data we have unveiled shows that far too few crimes are resulting in a charge, with the situation likely to be even worse in reality than even this data suggests given many LGBTQ+ people do not report hate crimes to the police due to a lack of faith in the service to act on the report.”

• The full data tables can be viewed HERE
• Details on cuts to PCSOs can be found here

   Leave a comment