Hate crime prosecutions to be fast-tracked after antisemitic attacks

Hate crime prosecutions are to be fast-tracked following a spate of recent antisemitic incidents, the director of public prosecutions has confirmed.

Stephen Parkinson has issued instructions to prosecutors in England and Wales, saying more needed to be done to clamp down on "daily incidents affecting the Jewish community, involving threats and abuse designed to cause fear and distress".

Parkinson said charges needed to be brought more quickly because it "is important law enforcement steps up and recognises we are in a period of crisis for the Jewish community" .

It comes after two Jewish men were stabbed in Golders Green, and a number of arson incidents in areas with large Jewish communities.

He continued: "If we allow this behaviour to become normalised, then its seriousness will become diminished and the problem of antisemitism will continue to grow. We must stop it in its tracks."

The Crown Prosecution Service said 658 cases flagged as religious hate crimes were prosecuted in the year to September 2025. Almost four fifths resulted in a conviction.

There were 11,140 cases of racial hate crime in the same period, with a conviction rate of 85.2%.

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