Ethnic Minority Liberal Democrats (EMLD), who are responding to the Home Office’s consultation on stop and search, have launched a new webpage to encourage members of the public to respond.
The organisation have set up an online survey using questions in the official consultation to boost the responses before the consultation closes on 13th August.
Vice chair Ruwan Uduwerage-Perera said: “This is an extremely important review of an issue that has been a running sore in BAME communities for generations.
“Home Secretary Theresa May has set a short timescale for responses. As this is the first government review of police stop and search for 30 years, since the Lord Scarman report, it’s crucial that as many people respond as possible, especially if they or their family and friends have direct experience of it for generations.”
You can fill in EMLD’s online survey here .
EMLD will publish our own response to the consultation on or before 13th August. We will submit individual responses to the online survey to the Home Office and may refer to comments or the results in our own submission.
You can view the official Home Office consultation here, and background information from the Home Office here.
Members of EMLD executive attended the public meeting on stop and search last week, addressed by Theresa May and Diane Abbott, and have set up a sub-group to write our response as well as consult experts.
For background information you might want to read the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s Stop and Think report here, and HM Inspectorate of Constabulary’s latest report on stop and search here.
However the most important knowledge is the personal experience you have. There are important questions covered in the consultation, including what powers the police should have, how they should conduct stop and search and whether the policing tactic should exist at all.
EMLD hopes you can participate in the online survey which closes in a fortnight.
