Stop and search stats may thwart diversity push, UK police warned

Disproportionate use of stop and search risks alienating black men, says Sir Thomas Winsor

Efforts to improve diversity among police officers are at risk of being thwarted by the disproportionate use of stop and search powers against black men, a senior policing watchdog has warned.

Police chiefs have previously said that a drive to restore officer numbers by 20,000 over the next three years would help accelerate" plans to improve diversity in policing. At the end of March last year, 93.1% of police officers were white and 6.9% were from other ethnic groups.