Avoid 'reactive' police reforms after Nowak murder, senior Black officer warns

Police forces risk making "reactive" and "not well thought-out" changes to anti-racism guidance in the wake of Henry Nowak's murder, a senior Black police officer has warned. Andy George, a chief inspector with the Police Service of Northern Ireland and head of the National Black Police Association, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that a hasty revision of anti-racism commitments was a mistake.

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There's definitely lessons to be learned from the Henry Nowak case and if the [police watchdog] sees through their thorough investigation that there are things that need to be done and changed – then certainly that's the time when things should be looked at.

His comments followed remarks by former Home Secretary Jack Straw, who suggested that policing had undergone an "over-correction" since the 1993 murder of Stephen Lawrence. Straw argued for "much greater care" in developing police race guidance, claiming that "vocal pressure groups" had exerted undue influence. The murder of 18-year-old student Henry Nowak and the subsequent police response have led to accusations of "two-tier policing" from some politicians.

Nowak was arrested while dying after his attacker, Vickrum Digwa, falsely accused him of racial abuse. The Independent Office for Police Conduct is investigating the officers' actions. The National Police Chiefs' Council is considering rewording an anti-racism commitment that states racial equality in policing does not mean treating everyone "the same" or being "colour blind." Opposition politicians have pointed to this statement as evidence of unequal standards.

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For us to go forward and for the policing minister to say 'that needs to be corrected or looked into right now' – for us, when we've pushed for things that impact black communities or black individuals, we've never seen policing move as quick as what they're advocating for right now.

George expressed frustration at the speed of potential changes, contrasting it with the slower response to issues affecting Black communities. "For us to go forward and for the policing minister to say 'that needs to be corrected or looked into right now' – for us, when we've pushed for things that impact black communities or black individuals, we've never seen policing move as quick as what they're advocating for right now," he said. He believes the current approach is "auto-correction" that is "very swift" and "quick," but lacks thorough consideration, driven by social media and public pressure.

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So, I would say it is definitely an auto-correction – it's very swift, it's quick – I don't think it's as well thought-out as it should be.

Straw, who was Home Secretary when the Macpherson Report declared the Metropolitan Police institutionally racist after Stephen Lawrence's murder, reiterated his view that "things were out of kilter at the time of the Macpherson report" and that reactions can sometimes "go too far the other way." Baroness Kishwar Falkner, former chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, acknowledged a perception of unfairness but disputed claims of an "over-correction" in policing standards. She accused some organizations of "virtue signaling."

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I think it's reactive to the current swell that we're seeing in social media and across different areas of public life at minute.