Black people have less confidence in UK police force: report

LONDON, May 24 (Xinhua) -- Black people have significantly lower than average rates of confidence in the police, according to a report issued on Tuesday by the British National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC).

Quoting data from the Crime Survey of England and Wales, NPCC acknowledged that Black people's rate of confidence in their police force stood at 64 percent, compared with an average of 74 percent. Among Black Caribbean people, the rate is even lower, at 54 percent.

NPCC said that some police powers, like stop and search and use of force, are disproportionately applied to Black people.

The Latest national data shows that Black people are almost nine times more likely to be stopped and searched than White people.

NPCC also acknowledged that the police force lags behind almost every other part of the public service as an employer of choice for Black people. Just 1.3 percent of police officers are Black, compared to 3.5 percent of the wider population.

"The failure to deal effectively with racism in police systems and processes has allowed those who wish to bully and discriminate to operate in the knowledge that they are seldom held to account," said Andy George, president of the National Black Police Association.

NPCC and the College of Policing released the Police Race Action Plan on Tuesday. Apart from training officers on racism, Black history and its connection to policing, the action plan also seeks to boost black police recruitment and enhance support for black victims of crime.