Saturday, 4 August 2007

MP blasts yobs 'solutions'

MP blasts yobs 'solutions'

John Pugh
Yobbish behaviour is the "scourge of modern times" but the government is wasting money on the wrong solutions, Southport's MP has said.
Liberal Democrat MP John Pugh criticised the Home Office for its failure to carry out "adequate" research on which measures work best in tackling and preventing anti-social behaviours.

A "plethora of initiatives", such as Asbos, acceptable behaviour contracts and dispersal orders, are used at varying rates in different parts of the country, with no information about which work best, he claimed.

Mr Pugh was speaking as the Commons Public Account Committee, which he sits on, published a damning report on Labour's war on louts and yobs.

It warned that a small proportion of families and individuals were causing "misery and despair" to communities, particularly in the most deprived areas.

Mr Pugh said: "There is clearly a hardcore of offenders who seem resistant to most measures taken to curb their behaviour but 80% can be stopped in their tracks provided the right measures are taken at the right time."

However, Cabinet minister Ed Miliband yesterday warned that youngsters in Britain are unfairly branded as anti-social louts.
Last Updated: 24 July 2007 2:57 PM

No comments: