Many Britons think the police are more lenient with some groups and more strict with others – but there is disagreement over how that applies
An accusation that has been levelled at the police by many on the right in recent weeks has been that they are engaging in “two-tier policing”. That is to say, that police have been treating minority groups more leniently than white people, particularly in the context of the recent anti-immigration protests when compared to Black Lives Matter and pro-Palestine rallies.
A new YouGov survey shows that many Britons do indeed believe that the police are stricter with some groups and more lenient with others. However, there is disagreement over which groups that applies to – and whether they are being over or under-policed.
For instance, the group that Britons are most likely to say aren't treated in the same way by the police are black people, with 51% thinking they are treated differently by police compared to 28% who think they are treated about the same as everyone else. However, those who think the police treat disorder by black people differently are divided on how that manifests: 29% think the police are more strict, while 22% think they are more lenient.
Similar stories play out with other groups like Muslims and climate activists.
Opinion is more one-sided when it comes to the far-right, who most Britons think are responsible for the unrest in recent weeks. More than a third of Britons (36%) think that the far-right are treated more strictly by the police, compared to 11% who think they are shown greater lenience. Three in ten (29%) think they are treated about the same by the police.
Attitudes differ dramatically between voting groups.
Reform UK voters in particular to likely to think that one group or another is being treated differently by the police. A majority of Reform UK voters think that disorder by Muslims (77%), black people (62%), the far left (59%), and climate activists (57%) is treated more leniently by the police, while half think that disorder by young men is treated more harshly (50%), rising to 72% for that caused by the far right.
Conservative voters come somewhat down on the same side as Reform UK voters – although to a much more limited extent – while Labour and Reform voters tend to disagree.
What do you think about two-tier policing, the recent riots in the UK, and everything else? Have your say, join the YouGov panel, and get paid to share your thoughts. Sign up here.
Photo: Getty
