"Clear bias" in coronavirus lockdown fines handed to Black, Asian and non-white people, data suggests

Data released under Freedom of Information shows that 22 per cent of fixed penalty notices (FPNs) handed out by North Yorkshire Police were given to people from BAME backgrounds (Black, Asian and minority ethnic) up to May 11, indicating a "clear bias" particularly towards young Asian males.

The county saw the highest number of fines handed out outside London for people caught breaching lockdown rules up to May 25, according to the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC).

Some 924 fines were issued by the police force between March 27, when new coronavirus laws were brought in by the Government, and May 11.

One in 10 of those were handed to Asian males aged between 18 and 34, data shows.

However, nine in 10 Black, Asian or other non-white people issued fines were visiting from outside the county, the numbers also show.

An ethnic breakdown of fines handed out shows that 120 (12.6 per cent) fines were handed to Asian people – of whom all but two were visitors to the area.

Some 16 fines were given to people of Oriental ethnicity, of whom all but one were visitors. A further 11 were issued to people who were either Black or mixed race, of whom all but two were visiting the area.

North Yorkshire's Police and Crime Commissioner said the figures showed a "clear bias" towards specifically young Asian men, adding that police forces were "rightly reflecting" on possible areas of institutional racism in light of recent Black Lives Matter protests.

Julia Mulligan said that the Office of the Police, Fire & Crime Commissioner (OPFCC) had scrutinised circumstances surrounding each fine being issued, saying they found "no evidence of discrimination".

She said: “Policing is rightly reflecting on itself at the moment, asking difficult but important questions about race, equality, policies and process, bias and whether policing is institutionally racist.

“In our area, there is evidence of a clear bias in the data, showing young Asian males were far more likely to have been issued a FPN than our demographics would suggest. This is concerning, but we recognised the issue quickly and have undertaken a number of steps to understand the situation.

"These include raising our concerns at a national level, including with the Policing Minister, questioning the data, and undertaking a comprehensive and independent piece of local scrutiny work to understand the issue in detail.

“In doing this, we found no evidence of any bias or discrimination in the individual issuing of FPNs, indeed all appear to have been issued fairly and appropriately in and of themselves."

Ms Mulligan added: "However, I remain very concerned that the sheer scale of FPNs issued to young Asian males is unfair and likely to be biased. This requires further work to understand; not only how the bias manifests in other places, but the policies and processes which can lead to activity of this kind.

"My office is working with the Deputy Chief Constable on this matter, treating it with the seriousness it deserves, and will be scrupulous in uncovering any conscious or unconscious bias in policing.

“We must all do everything within our power to root out discrimination of any kind, and I am committed to doing so."

A spokesman for the force said: “North Yorkshire Police has issued more FPNs in line with the Covid-19 legislation than any other force in England & Wales. At a very early stage we identified that there was a disproportionate number of FPNs being issued to people of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic heritage and invited the OPFCC to provide independent scrutiny of our process.

“When analysed, it was found that around 57% of the Fixed Penalty Notices were issued to visitors to North Yorkshire. In the Craven District the proportion was substantially higher with 95% of the FPNs being issued to visitors.

“I am pleased that, following a detailed review, the OPFCC found no evidence of discrimination, and that the FPNs issued by our officers were issued fairly and appropriately."