PM targets beggars in crackdown on crime
Sunak to hand police tougher powers to tackle anti-social behaviour
RISHI SUNAK is to launch a crackdown on begging as he announces a war on anti-social behaviour.
The Prime Minister will unveil a series of new powers allowing police to move on rough sleepers who are causing “public distress”.
This could include people who are blocking shop doorways, asking for money at cash machines or leaving their belongings on pavements.
Under the powers, police officers and local authority workers will be able to confront “nuisance” beggars and order them to move on, while also encouraging them to make use of accommodation services and mental health support.
Another new offence will be created to counter criminal gangs that organise begging networks, which Whitehall officials believe is often used to facilitate illegal activities.
The move is part of a wider crackdown on crime to be announced by Mr Sunak today, including a ban on laughing gas and a requirement for offenders to begin cleaning up graffiti within 48 hours.
It comes just weeks after Sir Keir Starmer launched a raft of policies aimed at tackling anti-social behaviour.
The Tories have been narrowing Labour’s lead in the opinion polls in recent weeks, following a series of announcements on Northern Ireland and migrants.
Private research by the Tories indicates their reputation on law and order remains one of their potential trump cards to win over swing voters ahead of next year’s expected election.
The new laws are designed to ensure the police act on beggars where they are causing a nuisance to the public.
The Georgian-era Vagrancy Act, which they will replace, criminalised all rough sleeping but meant that in practice there was little to no law enforcement.
Launching the policies today, Mr Sunak will say: “Anti-social behaviour undermines the basic right of people to feel safe in the place they call home. The public have rightly had enough – which is why I am determined to restore people’s confidence that those responsible will be quickly and visibly punished.
“This action plan maps out how we will tackle this issue with the urgency it deserves and stamp out these crimes once and for all – so that wherever you live, you can feel safe in, and proud of, your community.”
It comes a week after Scotland Yard was pilloried in a report for being homophobic, sexist and misogynistic.
But senior Tory Party figures believe members of the public are equally concerned by the perceived lack of action on anti-social behaviour.
The Government’s annual rough sleeping statistics found an estimated 3,069 people to be on the streets on any given night in the autumn of 2022 – up by 26 per cent on the previous year.
The figures, released last month by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, also showed that 99,270 households were staying in temporary accommodation at the end of September last year.
At least 130,000 households in England were made homeless during the first year of the pandemic, despite the Government’s ban on evictions.
The most common triggers for homelessness during Covid were no longer being able to stay with friends or family, losing a private tenancy, and domestic abuse, according to the charity Shelter.
The new powers and offences will be brought in to replace the Vagrancy Act, which dates back almost two centuries and made all rough sleeping illegal.
Charities such as Crisis have long criticised the legislation for criminalising homelessness and begging, arguing that people on the streets should be offered support rather than face the criminal justice system. The Act was formally repealed last April as part of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill but it remains in place until its replacement comes into force.
Victims and communities will also be given a say in what sort of punishment is meted out to people who engage in anti-social behaviour.
RISHI SUNAK has announced his intention to “stamp out” anti-social behaviour blighting Britain’s communities, as he declared people have “had enough” of disruption on their doorsteps.
Unveiling a major plan to crack down on the problem, the Prime Minister said he is “determined” to restore people’s confidence that offenders will be “quickly and visibly punished”.
The Government’s strategy maps out how ministers will tackle anti-social incidents “once and for all” – with measures ranging from a ban on laughing gas to plans for criminals to clean up their own mess in high-visibility jackets.
Suella Braverman, the Home Secretary, said that the public are “fed up” of such nuisance behaviour, insisting “there is no such thing as petty crime”. The plan’s key points are:
Ban on laughing gas
A high-profile component of the Government’s strategy to tackle anti-social behaviour is a ban on laughing gas, confirmed by Michael Gove, the Cabinet minister, yesterday.
The Communities Secretary said the inappropriate use of the substance – also known as nitrous oxide, or “nos” – would be forbidden to stop public areas morphing into drug-taking “arenas”.
There are concerns that the craze fuels poor behaviour, litters neighbourhoods with silver shells and poses a health risk for young people. There would be exemptions to the ban for those possessing the substance for legitimate reasons, including chefs who use it for products such as whipped cream and chilling food.
Ministers have decided to press ahead with the move against the recommendation of the independent Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs.
It is not yet clear precisely which drug classification will apply to the substance, with Mr Gove merely saying the aim is to “make sure the sale and use can be restricted for its appropriate purpose”.
The Government wants the ban to send a “clear message” to “intimidating gangs that hang around high streets and children’s parks and litter them with empty canisters” that “they will not get away with this behaviour”.
Harsher punishments for graffiti and littering
In an attempt to clean up the streets, the Government will raise the punishment for people who blight their communities with graffiti, litter or fly-tipping, with fines of up to £500 and £1,000.
Mr Sunak has cited spray-painted war memorials, discarded nitrous oxide canisters and needles in playgrounds as examples of incidents that make “life miserable for so many”.
There will also be council “league tables” for fly-tipping, while ministers will work with the Office for Local Government to “increase transparency and improve accountability on anti-social behaviour outcomes”.
48-hour turnaround
Ministers want to “quickly and visibly” punish anyone who defaces buildings or illegally dumps waste by forcing them to tidy up their mess as soon as 48 hours after the incident.
Offenders will be made to work under supervision wearing high-vis vests or jumpsuits, and could be required to pick up litter, remove graffiti or wash police cars.
The Government says the new “Immediate Justice” schemes will show victims that anti-social behaviour is treated “seriously and with urgency”.
Communities will be given a say over the punishments dealt out to “ensure that justice is visible and fits the crime”.
‘Hotspot’ police patrols
The Home Office will announce “hotspot” policing schemes where officers and council wardens blitz areas that have been blighted by the highest rates of anti-social behaviour.
The chosen zones will see an increased uniformed presence on public transport, on high streets and in parks to help deter offenders and ensure crimes are punished at pace.
Under the plan, 16 areas in England and Wales will be funded to support either new “hotspot” patrols or trial the new “Immediate Justice” schemes to dish out “swift and visible punishments”.
A select few areas will try out both interventions. Following these initial
‘We want to send a clear message to gangs that hang around high streets and parks and litter them with empty canisters’
trials, the schemes will be rolled out nationwide from next year.
Drug-testing
Police powers to drug-test suspects upon their arrest will include crimes linked to violence against women and girls and anti-social behaviour.
Currently, the capacity is limited to burglary, robbery, theft, fraud, begging and possession of Class A substances.
Officers will also be able to test for more drug types, including ecstasy and methamphetamine.
Evictions for disorderly neighbours
Landlords and housing associations will be given fresh powers to evict unruly tenants who disrupt their neighbours with persistent noise or drunk and disorderly behaviour.
‘Cuckooing’ crackdown
Ministers will seek to tackle the “awful” practice of “cuckooing” – where the victim’s home is invaded by criminals who use it to carry out illicit activities, such as drug dealing – by exploring the scope for a new criminal offence.
New begging offence
It will be made an offence for criminal gangs to organise begging networks to rake in extra cash.
Police and local councils will also be given the tools to redirect those “causing nuisance” on the streets, including by obstructing shop doorways and begging near cash points.
They will be pointed towards “the support they need”, such as accommodation, mental health or substance misuse services.
The associated “debris and paraphernalia” which “causes blight” will then be cleared away.
Reporting tool and taskforce
A reporting tool will be developed over the next year to act as a “digital one-stop
shop” for people to log anti-social behaviour.
It will also offer the public advice on what to do next, provide updates on the steps being taken to remedy the problem, and help local agencies more quickly identify repeat offenders by supporting them to share intelligence on perpetrators in their area.
Meanwhile, an anti-social behaviour taskforce jointly led by Home Secretary and the Communities Secretary will “bring together national and local partners” to help restore people’s pride in their communities.
Boost for parks and empty shops
Up to £5million will be invested in parks and green spaces to install new CCTV, repair equipment and playgrounds, and plant more trees and flowers. The Government will also seek to revive empty shops by giving councils fresh powers to seize and sell off vacant buildings.