Is wolf whistling illegal in the UK, is it a hate crime and what is the law on catcalling?

WOLF whistling is a familiar annoyance to most women - but there are calls to outlaw it as a hate crime.

What are the current laws around catcalling and could it be made illegal? Here's what you should know.

Is wolf whistling illegal in the UK?

Wolf whistling is when a person, normally a man, whistles at someone to express sexual attraction.

The typical image in our minds is of a woman walking past a building site to a chorus of whistles from workers.

Many find the practice at the very least annoying — at worst, abusive.

It is not illegal in the UK.

Should wolf whistling be made a hate crime?

There are calls to outlaw wolf whistling as a hate crime — equating it to racist abuse.

In March 2018, Labour MP Melanie Onn called for catcalling and wolf whistling to be classed as hate crimes with a debate in the House of Commons.

She claimed an overhaul of the law would help cut anti-women crimes including upskirting and online trolling.

And she demanded that harassment on public transport should "be formally logged so women can have greater confidence that their concerns will be taken seriously.”

The campaign stepped up in May when French politicians debated a law to issue catcallers with on-the-spot fines of up to £656.

What is the law on catcalling?

Catcalling is not illegal in the UK, but police forces vary in their approach.

A poll by YouGov found 85 per cent of women aged 18-24 said they received unwelcome advances from men in public.

Nottinghamshire Police are undertaking a sexist hate crime trial.

They log “incidents against women that are motivated by an attitude of a man towards a woman and includes behaviour targeted towards a woman by men simply because they are a woman”.

In the first eight months of the trial 79 such acts were logged, 31 of which were categorised as hate crimes.

In 2016, Nottinghamshire Police was the first force in the country to recognise misogyny as a hate crime.

Since then, debates in Westminster have taken place and MPs have begun discussing possible changes to the law.