The Archbishop of Canterbury has spoken out about a rise in hate crimes recorded since the result of the EU referendum.
Reports to police have risen 60% in the last week.
Most Revd Justin Welby has said that these acts can never be justified.
He told Sky News: "It is an evil thing to do, the logical extension of hatred is what we see here.
"What we need is the capacity to speak with respect and love and compassion and grace to each other, even when we disagree."
The number of hate crime incidents reported to a national police portal since the EU referendum have been five times the typical weekly level, new figures have revealed.
From last Thursday to Wednesday this week 331 incidents were reported to the True Vision online site - equivalent to 47 every day.
The tally compared with a weekly average of 63 reports.
It was also revealed that analysis of reports shows an increase in community tension directed at the migrant community since the referendum.
Justin Welby went on: "There seems to have been a very, very sharp rise in xenophobia and in hate crime.
"We have to say the referendum is irrelevant to that, it's poisonous, it's deeply wrong."
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Article by Hannah Tooley
Hannah Tooley is a multimedia journalist for Premier.