Met Police Proposes Legislation to Protect Free Speech and Reduce Officer Discretion in Social Media Cases

The Metropolitan Police head, Sir Mark Rowley, is set to propose a law change that would shield individuals from police action when their social media comments do not pose a real-world threat. The change aims to give officers more discretion in handling complaints about online posts, with a focus on using "common sense" when dealing with reports. This move comes after the arrest of comedy writer Graham Linehan, who was detained by armed officers at Heathrow airport over three tweets about transgender activists.

Key Takeaways:

• The Metropolitan Police head, Sir Mark Rowley, is proposing a law change to protect free speech and reduce officer discretion in social media cases.
• The proposed legislation would allow police officers to disregard complaints about online posts that do not pose a real-world threat.
• The change aims to give officers more discretion in handling complaints, using "common sense" when dealing with reports.
• The move follows the arrest of Graham Linehan, a comedy writer detained by armed officers at Heathrow airport over three tweets about transgender activists.
• Linehan plans to sue the Met for wrongful arrest and breach of his human rights.
• The proposal also aims to reduce the need for police to attend and record non-crime hate incidents (NCHIs).
• Graham Linehan was treated like a "terrorist" when he was arrested, according to his account in The Times.
• Sir Mark Rowley conceded that officers should not be "policing toxic culture war debates".

Statistics:

• None provided in the original text.
• However, the article mentions that Graham Linehan was arrested and detained by armed officers at Heathrow airport.
• The proposal aims to reduce the need for police to attend and record non-crime hate incidents (NCHIs).

Sources:

• "The Daily Telegraph"
• "The Times"
• Unnamed individual quoted in The Daily Telegraph
• Graham Linehan, Irish comedy writer