Andrew Gwynne, MP for Denton and Reddish, has backed Labour’s national plan to tackle antisocial behaviour. It comes after Gwynne attacked the Tories for failing to keep local communities safe.
More than 14 million people last year had their lives blighted by graffiti, drug dealing and noisy neighbours.
Meanwhile, the total number of neighbourhood police across the North West has fallen by 41% in between 2015 and 2022. Nationally, the total number of neighbourhood police officers and PCSOs has fallen by 10,000 since 2015.
Labour have committed to restoring neighbourhood policing, with visible neighbourhood police hubs in local areas backed by new neighbourhood prevention teams made up of police, community support officers, youth workers and local authority staff.
These teams would prioritise being visible on patrols, preventing crime before it happens and working directly with communities to address local issues. They would pursue serial perpetrators of ASB or low-level crime, as well as dealing with visible signs of disorder such as broken windows, graffiti, fly-tipping, or drug dealing. Labour has also pledged to give victims of persistent antisocial behaviour the same rights as victims of crime.
Supporting the strategy, Andrew Gwynne said:
“Antisocial behaviour is tearing apart communities right across the country, yet the Tories seem to be sticking their fingers in their ears and pretending that it doesn’t exist.
Local police across Denton and Reddish work incredibly hard, but unfortunately, they’ve been let down by a Tory Government that has slashed police numbers, and made our communities more unsafe as a result. Britain deserves so much better.
Labour is the only party with a credible and serious plan to prevent crime and catch more criminals.
The last Labour Government brought in neighbourhood policing – and we’re committed to restoring it when we’re in power.”