Antisocial behaviour is often raised at local police priority setting meetings

I would like to see the term “Anti-Social Behaviour” disappear. I don’t find it useful as almost invariably it masks what people are really talking about which can be anything from youths gathering to very serious crimes including drug use and dealing.

Too often, particularly young people, find themselves coming into contact with the police for behaviour which would not until relatively recently have been considered a problem. I think the police need to be much more ready and willing to tell people who call them that what they are reporting is not a problem; but while doing so provide the reassurance many are seeking that they are available should any criminality ensue.

Dealing with something as “anti-social behaviour” can result in those who have committed offences such as driving offences being dealt with more leniently than they would have been otherwise. I think that a risk of losing a driving licence (or delaying the ability to obtain one) would be a more effective deterrent to many offences involving motor vehicles on the roads than the often out of court routes through which anti-social behaviour is dealt with.

Overview

I have published a summary of my views on what Cambridgeshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner ought do.