Grime artists 'unfairly targeted' by police forms, culture minister Matt Hancock claims

A government minister has raised fears a police policy is unfairly targeting grime artists.

Culture minister Matt Hancock raised concerns that a form used by the Met Police is “potentially stifling young artists” and damaging London’s nightlife.

In a letter to London mayor Sadiq Khan, Mr Hancock likened the grime scene, popularised in the mainstream by artists including Dizzee Rascal, Skepta and Stormzy, to the birth of punk in the 1970s.

Mr Hancock wrote to Mr Khan amid accusations of racism over the form, which is filled out by venues and promoters putting on an event and asks for the names and phone numbers of artists and promoters.

In the letter, Mr Hancock said "I am concerned that the form is not only potentially stifling young artists and reducing the diversity of London's world renowned musical offering, but is also having a negative impact on London's night-time economy by pushing organisers and promoters of urban music events to take them outside London.

"Genres of urban music like grime have the same significance for today's young people as punk did in the 1970s, empowering them, creating a new generation of musical heroes and growing to become a worldwide phenomenon."

The Met denies the form is used for targeting certain genres of music, saying it is largely voluntary and designed to help promoters and the police work together to put in place additional measures "to mitigate any risks" if required.

But speaking on the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire programme, artist P Money called the form "a race thing," saying the police "target grime a lot, they just blame a lot of things on grime".

Grime is a genre of music born in London in the early 2000s, influenced by garage, hip hop and drum & bass and first played on pirate radio stations.

A Scotland Yard spokesman said: "The form does not target any particular group nor does it ask for the genre of music, event type, age range or demographic of the customers who attend."

He added that the force ran regular forums with promoters and venues across the city to exchange views and air grievances.

"We have good working relationships with promoters and venues alike and are confident the majority understand the need for Form 696," he added.

City Hall said in a statement: "Our priority is to keep Londoners safe and support a vibrant night-time economy, and this means ensuring that all performances have the most appropriate security and safety plans in place.

"We have supported a number of events that bring together the Met, music venues, and promoters to try to improve the understanding of when and how Risk Assessment Form 696 should be used."

The form was criticised in 2009, when two questions which asked for the ethnic make-up of attendees and the genre of music being performed were removed following accusations of racial profiling.

Reporting by Press Association.