Police racial bias played role in UK Covid fines regime, says report

Researchers say institutional racism probably contributed to differential approach' to enforcement of powers

Bias in policing at least partly explains why minority ethnic people were more likely to receive fines for Covid breaches than their white counterparts, research says.

The study, seen by the Guardian, was based on in-depth interviews with officers who policed the streets. The officers spoke confidentially to academics from Liverpool University and served in forces in northern England, including Cheshire, Cumbria, Merseyside, Greater Manchester and West Yorkshire.