Following last week’s EU referendum result Sutton’s leaders want to reassure residents that they live in a safe, tolerant and inclusive borough.

Cllr Ruth Dombey, Leader of Sutton Council, Niall Bolger, Chief Executive of Sutton Council, Cllr Tim Crowley, Leader of the Opposition at Sutton Council, and Sutton Borough Police Commander Dave Stringer said in a joint statement:

“Since the EU referendum result there have been media reports of hate crimes against people living in this country. However, there has been no increase in hate crime incidents reported to the police in Sutton and across London.

“We are grateful that Sutton has not seen an increase in such intolerant and antisocial behaviour. The vote is not a licence for racist and xenophobic behaviour. We would urge residents to be vigilant to ensure that all borough citizens continue to live together in a peaceful, harmonious and responsible way.

“We are aware that certain events can spur intolerance, hate or extremism. Anyone who witnesses or suffers any hate incident of any type should report it immediately to the Police so that they can take action and deal with any incidents quickly.

“Sutton is a popular place to live, in part because we are a tolerant, open society that values people of all cultures, nationalities and religions. At this time it is more important than ever that we show solidarity with our neighbours of all different faith and cultural groups to ensure that extremist views and behaviour have no part of our community.”