Allison Pearson, a journalist for The Daily Telegraph, has spoken out about feeling “bullied and threatened” after Essex Police paid her a visit as part of an investigation into alleged incitement to racial hatred following a complaint from a member of the public relating to a social media post. Pearson told BBC Radio 4’s PM programme the visit was not “standard practice” and was “absolutely unacceptable”. Essex Police argued that officers had visited Pearson to arrange an interview but maintained that the investigation had since been dropped and that there will be an independent review into their handling of the matter. Pearson has called for an end to such “minor charge” investigations and argues that officers should not be permitted to pay home visits unless in “extremely serious” circumstances.
Pearson publicised the visit from police in an article she wrote in the Telegraph where she claimed they had told her it was over a “non-crime hate incident,” but had not told her which post it related to. The force disputes this claim. The post in question dated November 16, 2023, included an image of two police officers standing next to two men holding a flag of the Pakistani political party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and tagged the Metropolitan Police beside the words “how dare they.” Pearson said she did “not think her tweet was wrong” and added: “I won’t censor myself but I will be more watchful in the future.”
Pearson’s claims have sparked a debate on free speech, with politicians including the shadow home secretary, Chris Philp, and the former prime minister Boris Johnson, both speaking out in favour of Pearson. The National Police Chiefs Council’s hate crime lead has been asked to carry out an independent review of the force’s handling of the matter, responding to which the Essex Police stated: “We support free speech but it does not support inaccuracy. If an alleged crime is reported, it is investigated. There is no public interest in falsehood.”
Roger Hirst, Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner for Essex, said an inquiry was necessary “so all of us can be confident the police are acting properly.
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