CERD recommendations 2024, paragraph 36
Plain English recommendation
Government should:
(a) Revise laws and policies and stop using practices that cause particular impact among ethnic groups. This includes those related to joint-enterprise and drug offences;
(b) Address the overrepresentation of ethnic minorities in the criminal justice system, including by avoiding over policing and unnecessary criminal justice interaction. Advance alternatives to arrest and jail for minor offences;
(c) Put strict limits on the use of tools like tasers and PAVA spray. Prohibit their use against children;
(d) Take action, including through new laws, policies or regulations, to ensure that the development and use of AI systems and biometric surveillance, including facial recognition technology, comply with international human rights standards. Specifically with regard to protecting against discrimination or profiling based on race, colour, descent, or national or ethnic origin;
(e) Improve the collection, monitoring, and analysis of data on ethnic disparities in the criminal and juvenile justice systems. This includes qualitative research to address the causes of disparities;
(f) Complete the implementation of the Lammy review’s recommendations, in particular those related to interventions before pleas.
Original UN recommendation
In the light of its general recommendation No. 31 (2005) on the prevention of racial discrimination in the administration and functioning of the criminal justice system, the Committee recommends that the State party take concrete and effective measures to eliminate racial discrimination, including its institutional and systemic dimensions, at all stages of the criminal justice system, in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, and in particular that it:
(a) Revise laws and policies and refrain from practices resulting in disparate impacts among ethnic groups, including those related to joint enterprise and drug offences;
(b) Address the overrepresentation of persons belonging to ethnic minorities, including by avoiding overpolicing and unnecessary criminal justice interactions and by advancing alternatives to arrest and incarceration for minor offences;
(c) Impose strict restrictions on the use of tools such as “tasers” and pelargonic acid vanillylamide (PAVA) spray, and explicitly prohibit their use against children;
(d) Adopt the measures, including legislative, policy, regulatory, institutional and standard-setting measures, necessary to ensure that the design, development, deployment and use of artificial intelligence systems and biometric surveillance technologies, including facial recognition technology, comply with international human rights standards, in particular with regard to the protection of persons against discrimination or profiling, including on the grounds of race, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin, in line with the Committee’s general recommendation No. 36 (2021) on preventing and combating racial profiling by law enforcement officials;
(e) Improve data collection, monitoring and analysis relating to ethnic disparities in the criminal justice system and the juvenile justice system, including qualitative research to effectively address the causes of these disparities;
(f) Complete the implementation of the recommendations from the Lammy review, in particular the recommendation concerning interventions before pleas.
Date of UN examination
24/09/2024
Original UN document
Download the original CERD concluding observations 2024 on the UN website.
Last updated on 11/04/2025