Emergency workers visiting homes will soon be better protected from racial and religious abuse under new government legislation.

The changes, introduced as amendments to the government’s Crime and Policing Bill, aim to close a loophole in current law that fails to cover abuse inside private residences. While it is already illegal to racially or religiously abuse someone in public, this protection does not extend to incidents occurring within people’s homes.

This legal gap was originally intended to protect private conversations from overreach by public order laws. However, it has unintentionally left police officers, paramedics, and firefighters vulnerable to abuse during house calls, with no legal recourse.

The government says incidents of racial and religious abuse against emergency staff in private homes are rising and believes it's essential to extend protections to frontline workers carrying out crucial duties such as resolving domestic incidents and providing urgent medical care.

The amendments will close this gap in the Public Order Act 1986, making it clear that abuse and threats based on race or religion against emergency workers will not be tolerated—regardless of the location.

Once in effect, the new law will allow for offenders to face up to two years in prison for abusing emergency workers in any setting. Photo by Colin McLaughlin, Wikimedia commons.