Blair Gibbs

Trigger happy policy

There have been signs recently that ministers are slipping back into the policy-by-headline mindset that defined the last Labour government. We’re seeing the sorts of policies that lack evidence, are launched without any detail on timetables or implementation, and are usually geared around an initiative — if possible, a pilot or a local trial that is short-lived and guaranteed not to alter very much. Today the Home Office brought us a classic of the kind: the ‘community trigger’ to address anti-social behaviour.

The Home Secretary’s motivation is sincere, but the method — devised by her officials — is deeply flawed. With what detail we have, we know that it will be piloted in several forces this summer, and it places an obligation on the police and local councils to devise a plan to address a problem such as a noisy neighbour or repeat graffiti, within a fortnight, if a sufficient number of people complain. It is not clear why five households must complain before the power is activated. Why not three, or ten? It is also unclear what a plan would involve, or how much officer time it would take up, or whether a paper plan is really what the victim would want.

In a powerful report from 2010, Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) exposed the shortcomings in how police respond to anti-social behaviour. HMIC documented how the ‘quality of life crime’ that plagues communities and creates the breeding ground for more serious criminality is just not taken seriously enough by the police. The death of Fiona Pilkington and her disabled daughter after years of harassment by local youths revealed a catalogue of horrific negligence that should have been a wake-up call for the whole service. Yet so far, despite all the spotlighting by HMIC, little has been done.

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