Black people are more than three times likelier to be arrested than white people in Hertfordshire, new figures show.

Civil lobbying charity Liberty, which campaigns for justice and equality, accused the police of acting unjustly towards ethnic minorities and called on the government to reduce police powers.

Home Office figures show 502 arrests of black people were made in Hertfordshire in 2020-21, which equates to around 16 arrests per 1,000, according to the 2011 census.

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In contrast, there were just 4.7 arrests per 1,000 white people, meaning a black person was 3.4 times more likely to be arrested.

Enoch Kanagaraj, co-chair of Watford-based charity One Vision, said focus on how black people are viewed by society needs to change - particularly with regards to children.

He said: “We can’t dispute that institutional racism doesn’t exist in the police or in any organisation. The police need to look at black teenagers as children not adults.

“When we start looking at a black child as a child then there won’t be such an issue of discriminating people.”

In Hertfordshire for 2020-21, 26.8 stop and searches per 1,000 black people were carried out, compared to 5.9 per 1,000 white people.

Liberty policy and campaigns manager Emmanuelle Andrews said the figures "highlight the injustices that black communities face across the criminal justice system".

She said: "The police should not be handed more powers, and their existing ones must be rolled back."

Hertfordshire Constabulary assistant chief constable Matt Nicholls said he recognises stop and search provokes strong feelings within the community but nearly one in every three in Hertfordshire has led to finding a contraband or an arrest.

He added: “Individual officers are held accountable for their actions. The Police and Crime Commissioner has a stop and search scrutiny panel that makes sure these powers are being used responsibly.

“Racism and discrimination have no place in policing, and we will challenge them wherever we find them.”

The Home Office added: "We now have the most diverse police force in history and have extensive safeguards in place to hold the police accountable."

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