Euro 2020 disorder sparks move to give police more powers
PUBLIC TO BE CONSULTED OVER BID TO CURB LOUTS IN ASHBY
POLICE could be given greater powers to tackle anti-social behaviour on the streets of Ashby, where the summer was marred by loutishness during Euro 2020.
A Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) could come into force if enough members of the public back a plan put forward by North West Leicestershire District Council.
Covering a wide area of the town, the council says a PSPO would help officers prevent a repeat of the ugly outbreaks of public disorder which blighted the town’s streets earlier this year.
At the height of England’s success in Euro 2020, police issued a dispersal order on many of Ashby’s streets in a bid to curb bad behaviour from groups of fans celebrating the team’s success in an irresponsible manner. That followed an earlier assault of a police officer in the town after England’s victory over Germany in the Euros on June 29.
The public disorder also saw a police van damaged after the England win, while a 21-year-old man was charged with criminal damage, being drunk and disorderly in a public place and resisting arrest on the night in question.
The order would see police and other authorised officers,’ including police community support officers (PCSOs), given the power to confiscate alcohol or psychoactive substances such as nitrous oxide, khat and spice, if there werre concerns around anti-social behaviour.
The order would cover Ashby’s town centre, the historic Bath Grounds, pictured, Hood Park and residential areas.
The order will not forbid the drinking of alcohol in public and on licensed premises, but police could still act under the order’s powers if they believed the drinking or substance use was linked to anti-social behaviour.