Police seven times more likely to stop black people

Black people are seven times more likely than whites to be stopped and searched by police, official figures showed today.

The number of stop and searches in general also rose by nine per cent taking the annual total to 955,000 - the highest figure since 1999.

Asian people were 2.2 times more likely to be stopped and searched than whites, compared with a rate of 2.1 in the previous 12 months.

The number of searches of individuals made under Terrorism Act powers fell 16.5 per cent last year to 37,000. The total for forms completed by police after stopping a potential suspect on the street rose by more than a third last year.

Soaring paperwork was revealed in the Ministry of Justice report showing that officers carried out 1.87 million "stops" on members of the public in 2006/07, compared with the previous year's total of 1.4 million.

Other statistics published today show that there was a

3.7 per cent rise in racist incidents recorded by police last year. Today's report is the first time the Government has published full figures on the use of the unpopular "stop" form, which is blamed for burdening officers with red tape by taking too long to complete.

A Home Office review has already suggested overhauling the measures, which were introduced in the wake of the racist murder of black teenager Stephen Lawrence, by replacing the foot-long form with a simple receipt.

The most common reasons given for a stop and search was for drugs and for stolen property.