UK Police Ditch Non-Crime Hate Records: A Step Towards Common Sense?

UK police are making a big change. They want to stop recording non-crime hate incidents (NCHIs). These are things that aren't crimes but are thought to be motivated by hate. Police chiefs think this system isn't working well. They say it takes officers away from real crime and might hurt free speech. The plan is to replace NCHIs with a "common sense" system. Only the most serious cases will be recorded as anti-social behavior. This means fewer things will be on police records forever. It also means people won't have to declare these incidents in job background checks. This change comes after some famous cases. Like when Graham Linehan, who co-created Father Ted, was arrested for posts on X. Some people thought this was a bad move for democracy.The new rules will be published next month. The College of Policing and the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) are behind this. The Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood, is expected to support it. Lord Herbert, who leads the College of Policing, said NCHIs will be scrapped. Instead, only the worst cases will be recorded. He called this a big change. He also said police shouldn't be spending time on online arguments. The NCHI system started in 2005. It came after the murder of Stephen Lawrence. But since then, social media has grown a lot. Police have been dealing with more online disputes. Some people think this change is good. They say it will help police focus on real crime. Others worry it might make people feel less safe. What do you think?