On June 13, 2023, a mentally ill man named Valdo Calocane went on a rampage in Nottingham, murdering 65-year-old caretaker Ian Coates and two 19-year-old students, Barnaby Webber and Grace O’Malley-Kumar. All three victims were clearly much loved by family and friends, and warm tributes poured out; O’Malley-Kumar had died trying to protect her friend and was posthumously awarded the George Medal for bravery. It was a senseless waste of life, all the more so because the killer had a long history of violence. Just six weeks before the murders he had attacked two people. The police failed to act.

The ongoing inquiry has proved something of a revelation about the workings of the state, in particular the way it balances the rights of suspected criminals and the general public

The ongoing inquiry has proved something of a revelation about the workings of the state, in particular the way it balances the rights of suspected criminals and the general public

Calocane had been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia in 2020, sectioned under the Mental Health Act several times between that year and 2023, ‘and was involved with a number of violent incidents before his killings’ according to reports.

Yet, as the Times recently stated, the inquiry was told that ‘the Nottingham triple killer carried out an earlier violent attack after being released by mental health professionals’ worried about the ‘over-representation’ of young black men in custody.

The newspaper noted that Calocane had ‘tried to batter down a neighbour’s front door, frightening her so much that she jumped out of a first-floor window and badly injured her back.’ While the mental health service had been ‘leaning towards’ sectioning him, he was released after ‘the team of professionals considered the research evidence that shows over-representation of young black males in detention’.

Progressive ideology has real-world consequences beyond hot-button issues around flags and language codes. The 2024 Labour manifesto declared that ‘The operation of the Mental Health Act discriminates against Black people who are much more likely to be detained than others. Labour will modernise legislation to give patients greater choice, autonomy, enhanced rights and support.’ This informed the Mental Health Act which passed late last year, furthering the goal of combatting ‘mental health inequality’ which has........

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