Shabna Begum, head of the Runnymede Trust, a race equality think tank, said political exploitation of murders is not new, “but the febrile context in which it is currently advanced makes it exceptionally dangerous”.
“The knee-jerk reaction of police leaders and politicians hurriedly committing to reviewing anti-racism guidance betrays the fact that decades of inquiries and reports have found that these efforts have made little to no difference to the over-policing of communities of colour – especially young Black men. Black people are seven times more likely to die following police restraint in Britain. There is two-tier policing – but not one that favours communities of colour,” she said.