But, as I’ve argued before, I’m
worried the clock is now being turned back. I make no apology for returning to
the issue because it is so important. On top of big cuts to neighbourhood
police, the Cameron/Clegg coalition wants to weaken police powers to fight
anti-social behaviour. I’m clear that they need to rethink these policies, as
we need stronger action against crime instead of their weak approach.
Home Secretary Theresa May
plans to water down Asbos so that someone who keeps ignoring police warnings,
court orders and injunctions to stop terrorising the local estate will no
longer be guilty of a crime. Instead, she plans to introduce the Community
Trigger – and, no, it isn’t one attached to a shotgun! - which gives people
the right to demand that police deal with anti-social behaviour, meaning forces
would have to investigate any incident reported by at least five people or any
three complaints by the same person. The reality is that victims who complain
three times will only have the right to a review, and this is just the minimum
requirement with the authorities able to wait much longer before taking further
action if they choose to.
What this will mean in practice
has been discovered in the Government’s own pilot schemes in Manchester,
Brighton and Richmond. These show that of 44,011 antisocial behaviour
incidents, the Community Trigger was only successfully activated 13
times.
The Government’s plans are also
weak on support for victims of repeated harassment. There are too many
loopholes to let offenders off if police resources are tight. And, all this is
to happen when the Government is cutting thousands of frontline police officers.
This all goes to show that this
Government simply doesn’t understand the strains and pressures some of our
communities are facing. Even more worrying is that it doesn’t appear to be
listening to the concerns those communities, and their elected representatives,
are expressing.
