A/HRC/41/54/Add.4 with the CPS Legal Guidance on Prosecuting Cases of Racist or Religious Crime and on Stirring up Hatred on the Grounds of Sexual Orientation. 76. Police-recorded religiously motivated hate crime has increased in recent years despite a backdrop of a longer-term downward trend in the experience of hate crime overall according to the Crime Survey of England and Wales. The Government recognises that there have been trigger events for increases in hate crime, such as the EU Referendum and the terror attacks in 2017, though data shows that these have been temporary. The biggest driver for this overall increase has been general improvements in police recording; through our work with the National Police Chiefs’ Council and third-party services such as the Community Security Trust and Tell MAMA, police are better at identifying whether a crime is a hate crime and victims may be more willing to come forward. 77. There is no evidence to suggest an increase in hate crime in Scotland following the referendum on UK withdrawal from the European Union. In June 2017, the Scottish Government published Tackling Prejudice and Building Connected Communities - an ambitious programme of work to tackle hate crime and build community cohesion. An Action Group has been established, chaired by the Cabinet Secretary for Communities, with key stakeholders, to take forward work to support victims, encourage reporting and collect better data. Following a review of hate crime legislation in Scotland undertaken by Lord Bracadale, the Scottish Government launched a 14-week public consultation on 14 November 2019, seeking views on the detail of what should be included in a new hate crime bill. An analysis of responses will be published in June 2019. 78. Para 71: The SR raised concerns about the adverse impact of immigration and border enforcement policies on racial equality particularly prominent in Northern Ireland. The land border with the Republic of Ireland presents serious operational challenges to law enforcement agencies on both of its sides and there are signs that knowledge of its vulnerabilities is increasing. Immigration Enforcement Immigration Officers (IOs) conduct periodic document checks at these ports to intercept illegal migrants travelling between NI, Great Britain and Ireland by way of the land border (known as Operation Gull). 79. Operation Gull focuses on domestic travel routes where intelligence has shown they are used by immigration offenders and other foreign national criminals and when intelligence suggests that a route is being used by immigration offenders, everyone is spoken to regardless of nationality or appearance. A consensual request for photographic ID can form part of that initial conversation. 80. When intelligence suggests that a particular flight or boat is being used by immigration offenders everyone is spoken to regardless of race. Additional immigration questions are asked only when an IO has reason to suspect that a person may be using the domestic routes in NI to avoid UK border controls - ie. the IO has established reasonable grounds to suspect that a person is not legally entitled to reside in the UK. 81. Immigration decisions are taken by reference to immigration status and by reference to the person’s past conduct. All persons are treated in the same way, save that a British Citizen may be able to establish their nationality more swiftly and once this has happened will not (and could not) be the subject of any immigration enforcement action. 82. All Operation Gull IOs are expected to carry out their duties in line with the training and guidance they have received, ensuring that their actions and treatment of the individuals that they encounter is in line with the three aims of the public sector equality duty. Guidance on the conduct of Operation Gull is set out in chapter 31 of the Enforcement, Instructions and Guidance (EIG). The guidance provides safeguards around e.g. level of seniority of the person approving the operation (Assistant Director/G7); that the IO must have reasonable suspicion that an immigration offence has been committed; and emphasises obligations under the Equality Act 2010. 83. The mandatory training that IOs undergo clearly outlines the provisions of the Equality Act, including the protected characteristics. IOs also receive supplementary training focusing on the prevention of bullying and harassment, which provides them with examples and case law relating to harassment on the basis of the protected characteristics and early resolution training. 15