Police defend investigation into journalist’s tweet | Global News Avenue

Daily Telegraph columnist Alison Pearson said she was “dumbfounded” after Essex Police visited her home on Remembrance Day over a social media post defended its actions.

Police said officers visited Pearson University as part of an investigation into alleged incitement to racial hatred following a complaint from a member of the public.

Pearson said in one post that police came to her home and told her it was a “non-criminal hate incident,” but did not tell her which post it was about.

Police said officers did not tell her “at any stage” the investigation was related to a “non-criminal hate incident”.

A non-criminal hate incident is one where no criminal offense was committed, but the reporting person believed the incident was motivated by animosity.

Essex Police said in a statement that officers “attended a residential address to arrange a time to interview a woman in relation to a complaint made by a member of the public”.

“During the brief interaction between the woman and our officers, she was never informed that the report was being investigated as a non-criminal hate incident. To suggest otherwise is completely inaccurate and misleading.

“As the public would expect, we have body-worn video of this interaction, which fully supports our position in this regard.”

• Warning: This article contains language that some people may find offensive

Pearson said in her article that she was not told which post the complaint was about, but “a year ago, I was Hamas attack on October 7” and waved slogans at pro-Palestinian marches.

The post, from November 16 last year, was seen by the BBC and has since been deleted. It showed a photo of two police officers standing next to two men holding what appeared to be flags of the Pakistani political party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

The post was tagged “How dare they” by the Metropolitan Police.

It added: “On Saturday, the police invited them to take a photo with the lovely, peaceful Friends of Israel, but the police refused. Look at this group of people smiling together with the Jew-haters.”

X added a notice to the post stating that the image was taken in Manchester, not London, and had “nothing to do with Palestine”.

Pearson said she was shocked when police showed up at her home last Sunday morning.

“I was definitely shocked. Surprised. That, too. Distraught. How could I not be shocked?” she said, adding that she felt “a visceral rage — this is not a crime — what on earth is?”

Police have since lodged a complaint with the Independent Press Standards Organization (Ipso) watchdog over The Telegraph’s reporting of the incident.

The Metropolitan Police told the BBC that the initial complaint was made by a member of the public on November 18 last year.

Police said they were contacted by a member of the public on social media “who wished to charge that a post on X may constitute a hate crime”.

It added that the allegation was recorded but not investigated before being passed to Sussex Police on November 22 because the complainant lived in the county. Sussex Police subsequently passed it on to Essex Police.

A number of politicians have come out in support of Pearson, including shadow home secretary Chris Philp and former prime minister Boris Johnson, sparking a debate around free speech.

Reform Party chairman Richard Tice told the BBC the Daily Telegraph columnist was “terrified” by the police visit.

He also called on the chief constable of Essex Police to apologize to Pearson as failure to do so could bring the force into disrepute.

The Home Office is already looking at how forces can balance scrutiny of non-criminal hate incidents with the right to free speech.

A spokesman for the Prime Minister’s Office said: “Ultimately, police are able to capture data relating to non-criminal hate incidents… to help prevent serious crime that may occur in the future.”

“This must be balanced with the fundamental right to freedom of expression and ensuring police can spend their time dealing with the issues that matter most to our communities.”

The BBC has contacted The Daily Telegraph for comment.