Stop and search

Liberty responds to Priti Patel lifting restrictions on stop and search

Posted on 16 May 2022

Liberty has responded to the news that Home Secretary Priti Patel has lifted restrictions on Section 60 stop and search.

Sam Grant, Head of Policy and Campaigns, said: 

“We all want to feel safe in our communities, but the police have consistently shown that they do not use stop and search fairly or proportionately, so giving them even more power isn’t how we get there.

“Not only are Section 60 stops not effective at detecting and reducing knife crime, they disproportionately affect people of colour, particularly Black people. Removing the S60 safeguards will worsen existing divisions between police and communities at a time when public trust and confidence in the police is at a serious low.

“Last year, Liberty and StopWatch launched legal action against the Home Secretary when she first tried to scrap these safeguards – and as a result, she rowed back on her decision, admitting that the equality impact assessment used to inform it wasn’t up to scratch.

“Instead of handing the police ever greater powers, the Government should repeal suspicion-less stop and search powers like Section 60. We need community-led interventions through investment in health, education, housing and social welfare – and for those in power to work with communities to develop strategies for keeping all of us safe which have human rights at their heart.”

I'm looking for advice on this

Did you know Liberty offers free human rights legal advice?

What are my rights on this?

Find out more about your rights and how the Human Rights Act protects them

Did you find this content useful?

Help us make our content even better by letting us know whether you found this page useful or not

Need advice or information?