The first annual report on hate crime recorded by the police, under Section 15 of the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021. This includes information on the number and type of hate crimes recorded by the police, as well as victim and perpetrator characteristics and prejudice shown.
This report presents information on police recorded hate crimes in 2024-25, covering the first year since commencement of the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021 on 1st April 2024. Due to changes in both legislation and the administrative systems used to record hate crime, it is not possible to provide a like-for-like comparison with the period prior to the Act being implemented.
In 2024-25, the police recorded 8,538 hate crimes in Scotland.
The number of hate crimes recorded per 10,000 of the population was highest in Glasgow City and City of Edinburgh local authority areas (32 and 25 crimes per 10,000 population respectively)[1] . The Na h-Eileanan Siar, Shetland Islands and Aberdeenshire local authority areas had the lowest rates.
Over three-fifths (62%) of hate crimes included a race aggravator. Just under a quarter (24%) included a sexual orientation aggravator, and just over one in ten (12%) had a disability aggravator. Those with a religion aggravator made up 7% of all recorded, whilst a transgender identity aggravator accounted for 2%.
The Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021 introduced two new protected characteristics, of age and variation in sex characteristics. Hate crimes aggravated by age and variation in sex characteristics each made up less than 1% of all hate crimes.
In 2024-25, three crime types accounted for 82% of all recorded hate crime, including ‘Threatening or abusive behaviour’ (48%), ‘Racially aggravated conduct’ (20%) and ‘Common Assault’ (14%).
You might also be interested in this evidence review which collates and presents barriers to reporting hate crime and identifies effective strategies to tackle them.