A "zero tolerance" approach to homophobic crimes is to be adopted by the Crown Prosecution Service.

The new initiative will include crimes against transsexuals, a ban on anti-gay language and a new definition of what constitutes a homophobic crime

Homophobic language, such as the word "homosexual" is to be barred from official documents and replaced with the term "LGBT", standing for lesbian, gay, bisexual or transsexual.

The new definition of a homophobic crime is based on the service's groundbreaking definition of a racist crime as one perceived as such by the victim, as outlined in the Macpherson report.

Incidents regarded by victims as homophobic or "transphobic" will now be treated as such.

The attorney general, Lord Goldsmith, said: "Homophobic crimes strike at people's right to feel safe and secure, and to abuse or attack someone because of their sexual orientation and gender identity is a hate crime which cannot be tolerated.

"The CPS today sends a clear message to those who commit such crimes that they will be dealt with firmly."

The director of public prosecutions, Sir David Calvert-Smith, said that the scale of homophobic crime was unknown because of a reluctance to report it.

"Too few of those who have had the courage to do so have seen the offenders prosecuted and brought to justice," he said.