HOME Secretary Amber Rudd insists an increase in hate crimes after the EU Referendum was ‘a spike which has now dropped off.’

The Hastings and Rye MP launched a raft of new measures last month entitled the Hate Crime Action, when she called on communities across Britain to "come together and stand united against those who use hate to divide us".

She has admitted to The Argus that Hastings was one of those places affected after the historic decision to leave the EU on June 23.

Ms Rudd said: "Make no mistake about it, Hastings is a great town of which I am very proud to be a part of. We have some wonderful people and some wonderful businesses.

"It is true to say that there was a very short spike in hate crime locally but I work closely with the borough council and the police and I very much hope that it was a one-off.

"The important message now to visitors is to state 100 per cent that people will be welcomed into Hastings, and that we are a very welcoming town."

Last month, Hastings Borough Council leader Peter Chowney confirmed that German students had been racially abused in Hastings.

He said: "This was reported on German television and led to a spate of holiday accommodation cancellations by German visitors.

"Not only are these nasty racists behaving in an illegal and despicable way, they're damaging the local economy too.

“I was disappointed to hear that some areas of the country have experienced a rise in community tension and, indeed, some members of minority communities here in Hastings now feel more uncomfortable following the referendum decision."

Under the national plan, there will be a new assessment of the level of racist, religious and homophobic bullying going on in schools to give them more guidance on how to report it.

Teachers and students will be given "new tools" to fight prejudice and hatred and a new programme to equip teachers to "facilitate conversations" when terrorist incidents happen at home and abroad will be launched.

The study will look at how police forces around the country understand and deal with hate crime reports.