In the United Kingdom, racist and sexist views are increasingly being perceived as part of ordinary public discourse. This was stated by Minister for Women and Equalities Bridget Phillipson, who also drew attention to the spread of misogyny among young men on social media, UNN reports, citing The Guardian.
According to Phillipson, the United Kingdom has found itself in a situation where statements and views that were considered unacceptable just a few years ago are gradually becoming a normal part of the public sphere.
Details
The minister is particularly concerned about the spread of misogyny and aggressive content on social media. She described social media as an environment where young men may be exposed to material that normalizes hatred of women and even violence.
Phillipson believes that the United Kingdom is close to a "zero point" regarding society's attitude toward violence against women and girls.
According to her, the problem concerns not only sexism but also racial issues.
"Things that were considered absolutely unacceptable only very recently are becoming normalized — both in attitudes toward women and in relation to race," the minister said.
Phillipson also criticized certain members of the British opposition.
In particular, she mentioned Conservative MP Nick Timothy, who previously called a mass Muslim prayer in London's Trafalgar Square "an act of dominance" and said that such religious events should be held in mosques rather than in public places.
The minister had previously described these remarks as "horrific racism against Muslims." Timothy himself rejected the accusation, saying that his comments concerned religion, not race, and accused the government of attempts to restrict freedom of speech.
Phillipson also criticized Reform UK representative Robert Jenrick. Previously, after visiting the Handsworth area of Birmingham, he said that in approximately an hour and a half he "did not see a single other white face" and called the area one of the least integrated places he had visited.
Jenrick himself insisted that he was referring to problems of integration and the existence of "parallel communities," not the racial backgrounds of the residents.
Violence against women
Phillipson separately spoke of systemic problems in the work of the British police when investigating violence against women and girls.
According to her, law enforcement agencies had failed to demonstrate sufficient progress for many years in responding to sexual and domestic violence.
According to the latest data from the UK's Office for National Statistics, in the year ending March 2026, approximately 2.1% of residents of England and Wales aged 16 and over reported that they had been victims of sexual violence. The figure was 2.8% among women and 1.4% among men.
During this period, police recorded more than 217,000 sexual offenses, 4% more than the previous year.
Phillipson also links the spread of misogyny to the influence of digital platforms. The British authorities are considering strengthening age restrictions on social media use, particularly for children under 16.
Measures discussed by the authorities include stricter user age verification, restrictions on certain platform features, and protection of children from dangerous content.
Context
According to the latest full data from the British Home Office, in the year ending March 2025, police in England and Wales recorded more than 137,000 hate crimes.
The number of racially motivated crimes, excluding data from London's police due to a change in the recording system, increased by 6%. The number of religiously motivated crimes rose by 3%, while anti-Muslim hate crimes increased by 19%.
At the same time, the statistics do not provide grounds for directly claiming an overall "normalization" of racism or sexism in British society. This wording is Phillipson's political assessment.
The British Home Office plans to publish the full data on hate crimes for the year ending March 2026 in October.
We remind you
In 2025, an independent study found systemic racism in the London police force, directed against Black employees and citizens. The report points to discrimination in personnel matters and searches, as well as the phenomenon of "adultification" of Black children.