An ex-police officer who won a legal challenge against a national policy for forces to record gender-critical views as non-crime “hate incidents” has said being offensive should not be an offence.

Humberside Police visited Harry Miller in January 2020 after a complaint over alleged transphobic tweets he made.

It was recorded on a national database as a non-crime hate incident.

But the Court of Appeal ruled on Monday the guidance was wrongly used and it had a “chilling effect” on Mr Miller’s freedom of speech.

Speaking outside court, Mr Miller, from Lincolnshire, said being offensive was “one of the cornerstones of freedom”.

“Only when speech turns to malicious communication or targeted harassment against an individual should it be a problem,” he added.