Police block 'impractical' reform of stop-searches

POLICE are trying to block a reform that opens their controversial stop-and-search powers to greater scrutiny in London, a Metropolitan Police Authority report reveals.

The Macpherson Report into the Stephen Lawrence case says police should record every stop-and-search and give a copy of it to the person stopped to ease the "climate of distrust" between ethnic minorities and the force.

But police leaders and officers on the ground say compulsory recording is impractical and will create a bureaucratic nightmare.

A study for the Metropolitan Police Authority (MPA) shows huge public support for the change. While 88 per cent of Londoners agree stop-and-search is a vital policing tool, 76.9 per cent feel confidence in the police will increase by recording all stops.

The response is still being analysed but early findings show "concern regarding respectful, informed operation of stop-and-search procedures is highest among the black (British), Asian (British) and mixed communities.".

Research has been carried out with groups including the Society of Black Lawyers, Age Concern, homeless and lesbian and gay organisations. Many ethnic minority groups have been consulted. "It may follow that the least support for stops and searches will be found with the young black (British) community," the report says.

Part of the exercise included a meeting with 50 police officers. The report says the officers generally recognised the potential for misuse of stop-and-search to erode public confidence.

But crucially, it says officers were sceptical of the need for change and feared extra bureaucracy.

Their concerns echo those of Deputy Commissioner Ian Blair who has said the idea of recording the name, address and ethnic origin of everyone stopped, along with the reason and outcome was "inconceivable in practice".

But a working definition of a stop should make clear that officers will only be expected to record incidents where they delay someone suspected of an offence or to seek an account of their possession of an article, such as drugs or a weapon.

The debate comes as the Met begins an experiment to formally warn rather than arrest anyone caught in possession of a small amount of cannabis.

The Home Office, which has the job of pushing through the Macpherson agenda for reform, is awaiting the results of public consultations before deciding whether a new law is required obliging police to record all stops.

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