The police clearance rate for racial and homophobic incidents in Northern Ireland is disturbingly low, a new report claimed yesterday.
And even though the level of hate crime is increasing, the approach by the authorities in tackling it is disjointed, sluggish and lacking in vision, according to the report by an all-party committee of MPs.
Until recently, the police service had no formal definition of sectarian hate crime, which was alarming given the North's troubled history, the Northern Ireland Affairs committee said.
Less than 7 per cent of incidents recorded as crimes by the police resulted in charges or summonses, the report said.
The committee said it was greatly concerned about the very low level of confidence that most ethnic, as well as the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities have in the police.
The committee recognised the steps taken by the police to develop more effective relationships and to improve its training strategies, but much more needed to be done to heighten confidence.
It was crucial that the Police Service of Northern Ireland become more representative of all communities, and the report recommended that the policing board secure higher levels of recruitment from minority ethnic communities as a matter of priority.
The report said: "It is deeply worrying that minority communities do not have full confidence in the police, particularly against the background of increased incidence of hate crime. This situation must be changed rapidly." - (PA)