We welcome the leaked proposal which indicates the Home Office’s recommendation to make crimes motivated by hate towards LGBT+ and disabled people equal to hate crimes motivated by religious and racial prejudice – something Galop has long called for.
Under current hate crime legislation, crimes motivated by race and religion are aggravated offences, incurring longer sentences, but crimes motivated by sexual orientation, disability and transgender identity are not. Rectifying this disparity would not only bring longer sentences for hate crimes committed against LGBT+ people but also demonstrate that the government is taking anti-LGBT+ hate crime seriously.
From Galop’s work with victims and survivors, we have supported clients through disappointing criminal justice outcomes where the sentencing doesn’t accurately reflect the impact and severity of the crime.
Our advocates continuously see how treating anti-LGBT+ hate crime as a lesser offence reinforces a lack of trust in the criminal justice process for the LGBT+ community. Victims and survivors who do choose to report are navigating a ‘hate crime hierarchy’.
These proposed changes will also extend the statutory time limit for anti-LGBT+ hate crime cases to be submitted to the CPS, giving victims and survivors more time to report and giving police more time to thoroughly investigate and build cases – something already afforded to racial and religious hate crime.
Galop saw a 60% increase in hate crime victims and survivors coming to us for support in between 2023 and 2024. While the latest ONS hate crime figures show a decrease in reported anti-LGBT+ hate crime, we know this is because people are simply not reporting. Implementing this proposal could be a meaningful step toward building trust between LGBT+ victims and the criminal justice system and will bring greater clarity for victims and survivors who are considering reporting to the police.
Parity across hate crime legislation will affirm that the Government takes anti-LGBT+ hate crime seriously and will send a clear message to perpetrators that these offences will be met with appropriate sentences.
Published: 31 January 2025
