The 12,183 arrests in 2023 were made under the provisions of Section 127 of the Communications Act 2003 (England and Wales) and Section 1 of the Malicious Communications Act 1988 – an increase of almost 58% over 2019 (7,734 arrests), the Times reports.

The laws criminalize sending messages that are considered “liberally offensive,” “obscene,” “threatening,” or “harassing” – even if they merely cause “inconvenience” or “anxiety.”

The fact that British police are currently arresting more than 30 people a day for spreading offensive or incriminating content on social media or via email and text messages has now led to massive protests by civil rights organizations: They accuse the British authorities of using vague laws against communication offenses to unduly interfere with freedom of expression and to “over-regulate” the internet.

Toby Young, founder of the Free Speech Union (a British organization), says: “The police are taking excessive action against suspected ‘speech crimes’ – while violent and sexual crimes often go unsolved.”

He pointed out that only 11% of such serious cases in England and Wales in the year up to June 2024 were solved – a drastic decline.

More arrests, fewer convictions

Although the number of arrests is increasing, the number of convictions is falling significantly: according to the UK Ministry of Justice, there were only 1119 convictions in 2023, compared to 1995 in 2015 – a decrease of almost half.

A common reason: “evidence difficulties” – especially if the alleged victim does not support further prosecution. In many cases, out-of-court settlements are also reached.

One particularly controversial case: 40-year-old David Wootton was convicted because of a Halloween costume: He had dressed up as Manchester Arena bomber Salman Abedi, posted a picture of it online and was subsequently arrested. His T-shirt read “I love Ariana Grande” and his backpack said “Boom” and “TNT”. He was found guilty of sending an offensive message and faces up to two years in prison. Wootton has appealed.

Disparities between police forces

The Metropolitan Police in London made the most arrests, with 1,709 cases, followed by West Yorkshire (963) and Thames Valley (939). However, in relation to population size, Leicestershire leads with 83 arrests per 100,000 inhabitants, followed by Cumbria (58) and Northamptonshire (50).

The actual number of arrests is likely to be even higher, as eight police forces – including Police Scotland, the second largest in the UK – provided no data or incomplete data.

The political background

As Attorney General, the current Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer recommended in official prosecutorial guidance that charges should only be brought in “extreme cases” for online abusive posts. Yet critics are now questioning his credibility.

Image
Simon Dawson / No10 Downing Street, OGL 3 http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3, via Wikimedia Commons