9 Oct 2020 | Facts and news from Full Fact

FACT CHECK

Crime in London has risen less than the rest of England since Sadiq Khan was elected as mayor, not more

Last week, journalist Dan Wootton claimed in a column in the Sun that “Since Boris Johnson stepped down as London mayor, crime in Sadiq Khan’s London has soared at five times the rate of the rest of the country.”

This is incorrect. Between the year ending June 2016 (i.e. roughly the whole year before Mr Khan was elected in May 2016), and the year to March 2020 (the latest data) the total number of recorded crimes per person increased by 18% in London and by 31% across England in general.

So not five times faster, as Mr Wootton claims, but slower.

But the change in recorded crime depends on the offence. For example, over the past year, homicides increased by 23% in London compared to 8% across England, while violence against the person in general increased by 2% in London compared to 7% across England.

Since publishing this article, the Sun has now corrected the error.
Why reporting crime stats is tricky
Reader, we need your help to call out inaccurate reporting

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When good information has never been more needed, you can help call out inaccurate reporting on issues that affect us all.

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Yes, you can count on me
The Full Fact podcast: series two
We’ve recorded a new series of interviews with world-leading experts and we’re excited for you to hear it.

Every Monday for the next ten weeks we’ll explore different themes of misinformation, from social media bots meddling with elections, to the psychology of conspiracy theories.

Our first episode on the potential dangers of ‘deep fake’ videos is out now.

FACT CHECK

Challenging someone for not wearing a face mask isn’t a breach of the Equality Act

Several Facebook users are sharing an image of text which claims that you could be in breach of the Equality Act and fined thousands of pounds if you challenge someone who is not wearing a face covering.

This is incorrect, and a pretty serious misunderstanding of the Equality Act.

Government guidance says, in summary, that you can respectfully ask someone to wear a mask, but they do not have to prove their right to exemption.

One barrister told Full Fact that a request by the owner of a business (like a shop or restaurant) to a disabled person to wear a mask is very unlikely to result in a successful civil claim for disability discrimination, as long as the business owner has followed the government guidance, and hasn’t singled out the disabled person for less favourable treatment than other non-disabled customers.
Who is exempt?

FACT CHECK

Ordinary colds and flu are not the reason for the “second wave”

A Facebook post written on 1 September, with 21,000 shares, suggested that a seasonal spike in colds and the flu is the real reason for a “second wave” of Covid-19.

Although the author appears to be based in Florida, it has been widely shared in the UK.

We can say with certainty that there has been a rise in the number of Covid-19 infections in the UK since 1 September.

We’ve seen more positive tests per day, both among people who came forward to be tested and people tested at random. The number of hospital admissions after a positive test rose in September too.
It’s not just normal cold season

FACT CHECK

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