Beshukova Z.M. Countermeasures against extremism in the UK

Abstract: The article is dedicated to the issues of countermeasures against extremism in UK. Such concepts as “extremism”, “hate crimes”, “racism”, “and religious intolerance” are being reviewed. The author analyses the criminal law of UK regarding this subject matter, emphasizes problematic questions pertaining to this topic, and draws certain conclusions. The specifics of regulation of responsibility for fomenting racial or religious hatred, as well as crimes aggravated by racial or religious motives are being revealed. The author reviews tendencies of criminal-legal policy in the field of countermeasures against extremism in UK. It can be concluded that the notion “extremism” is not codified within the UK legislation, however it is present within the English criminology and is used by the law enforcement authorities. An attempt to establish criminal responsibility for instigating religious intolerance was made in 2001. Nevertheless, only in 2006 the Parliament of the United Kingdom accepted the law about racial and religious hatred, where for the first time the responsibility for fomenting religious hatred was ascertained. The notion “hate crime” is also not codified by the UK legislation, but the Crown Prosecution Service and Association of Chief Police Officers provided the general definition of a hate crime.

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