Cllr Bob Wright: Anti-Social Behaviour is still a Problem in Swindon

The Swindon Labour Group’s Lead Member for Communities & Public Protection, Councillor Bob Wright, has urged the Government not to scrap Anti-Social Behaviour Orders and called for faster action to help tackle anti-social behaviour in Swindon.

The Swindon Labour Group’s Lead Member for Communities & Public Protection, Councillor Bob Wright, has urged the Government not to scrap Anti-Social Behaviour Orders and called for faster action to help tackle anti-social behaviour in Swindon.

Swindon Borough Council has joint responsibility with Wiltshire Policy Authority for addressing anti-social behaviour in the Swindon and both public sector bodies fund Swindon’s Community Safety Partnership, who administers anti-social behaviour orders. 

A detailed breakdown obtained by Freedom of Information Requests from Shadow Minister for Crime Prevention Gloria De Piero and research by statisticians from the House of Commons Library has revealed new figures, which show in Swindon there were 10,291 anti-social behaviour incidents recorded in 2012.

This means on average there were 49 anti-social behaviour incidents per 1,000 people in Swindon in 2012.

The figures also paint a revealing picture of the scale of the anti-social behaviour problem at a police force wide area, with Wiltshire police force recording 26,249 incidents of anti-social behaviour in 2012.

The Swindon Labour Group’s Lead Member for Communities & Public Protection, Councillor Bob Wright, said:

“While there have been reductions in anti-social behaviour in Swindon and nationally, anti-social behaviour is still a serious problem that blights some neighbourhoods and in Swindon last year 10,291 anti-social behaviour incidents were recorded last year.

This shows that anti-social behaviour orders are still needed and the government’s plans to scrap the Anti-Social Behaviour Orders and replace it with a weaker power which carries no criminal sanction for a breach, is the wrong call.  Indeed the Government’s newly proposed power to tackle anti-social behaviour requires a person to complain three times before it is met with a response. That simply isn’t good enough for the people of Swindon and they should have the right to expect action right away and help to tackle an issue which is a huge worry.”

Cllr Bob Wright

Swindon Labour Group Lead Member for Communities & Public Protection