Labour promises visible policing presence
Prime Minister Tony Blair has promised that a third-term Labour government would make sure there was a visible policing presence on Britain’s streets.
Unveiling six key promises – ranging from town centre exclusion orders for those repeatedly found drunk and disorderly, to raising the age that knives can be bought to 18 – Mr Blair said that Labour would take the fight against crime forward.
He welcomed today’s Home Affairs Select Committee report on police reform, saying that it endorsed the role of community support officers and fixed penalty notices, as well as highlighting the need to reduce bureaucracy through IT and bring more criminals to justice.
Mr Blair said that Labour would expand the number of CSOs to 24,000 “so the public can see a visible police presence on the streets”.
Headline measures are the pledge to raise the age for knife sales and introducing tighter laws on replica firearms to lower violent crime. On drugs, he said that in the 100 highest-crime areas there will be drug-testing at arrest and treatment for all those who test positive. Prolific offenders leaving jail would be randomly drug tested twice a week.
On anti-social behaviour, there would be fixed penalty notices for offenders under 16, Drink Banning Orders keeping those punished three times for drunken violence or disorder away from city centres and councils would gain the power to ban beer glasses and bottles.
The Labour leader claimed that in contrast the Conservatives would inevitably cut police spending.
He said: “This is all in stark contrast to Conservative plans to cut public spending by £35 billion by the end of the next Parliament – cuts that would inevitably hit police numbers and the fight against crime – just as they did when the Conservatives were last in power.”
Home Secretary Charles Clarke added that the Conservatives, were they to win power, would cut services, halt the New Deal, cut investment in deprived areas, and set the country back to “neglect” and “rising crime”.
But, the Liberal Democrats said that measures to cut violent and gun crime were too little, too late.
Home affairs spokesman Mark Oaten, said: “Gun crime has doubled under Labour, and the misuse of imitation firearms is a growing menace. Action on replica weapons and knives is long overdue, but age is not the only issue. Steps must be taken to regulate sales over the internet, where the age of the buyer is difficult to determine.”
Mr Oaten suggested that the maximum sentence for carrying a knife should be raised to seven years, to bring it in line with firearms, and a national register of licensed firearms should be set up.
The Conservatives say they would introduce 40,000 more police.
Shadow Home Secretary David Davis, said that today’s announcement would do nothing to tackle the problem of violent crime.
Mr Davis, said: “We have heard it all before. Tony Blair promised to be tough on crime and the causes of crime but as a direct consequence of this government’s policies, violent, anti-social behaviour, drug and alcohol related crime have gone up. Last year there were a million violent crimes for the first time ever. Their mini-manifesto will not solve this mega-problem.”
