John Baron

Conservative Party | Billericay and District

Points of View

Zero Tolerance

Quite rightly, there is much concern about the extent of which violent crime is rising.  But in addition to this, there is the added concern that even for the less violent crimes the detection rates tend to be poor.  For example, recent figures show that out of nearly 17,000 burglaries across Essex, only 434 were ever brought to justice and sentenced; of those, only 230 were jailed for their crimes.

Burglary is a serious crime which causes great distress for its victims. Yet it is very worrying that only a fraction of burglars are ever caught and brought to justice.

The answer has got to be a much tougher approach to crime.  Whilst accepting that our prisons need fundamental reform, this tougher approach must include stiffer court sentences, a further 40,000 Bobbies on the streets of Britain (equating to a further 1,000 police officers for Essex) and a zero tolerance approach to the criminal.

During the 1990s, a zero tolerance approach was introduced in New York backed up by a large increase in police numbers from 28,000 to 42,000.  The result was that crime fell across all categories by at least 60%.  By contrast over the same period, London's police numbers fell from 28,000 to 25,000 and crime continued to rise.

Part of the problem is that the Government is not committing sufficient resources to tackle the problem. Together with others, I recently intervened on behalf of Essex Police and we managed to secure a further £440,000 from the Home Secretary.  This was better than nothing but still well short of what was promised.  Starving the police of cash is not the answer. 

The Government must wake up to the fact that the criminal chooses to commit a crime, the victim has no choice in the matter. A zero tolerance approach and proper funding of the police to help pay for 40,000 extra officers has got to be two key policies in beating the criminal.

The British Legion

As a local member of the Legion, I recently attended their 'At Home' in Parliament, and congratulated them on their work.

It is always worth remembering that the British Legion works throughout the year to safeguard the interests and welfare of ex-service personnel and their dependents - offering financial, social and emotional support to literally millions of children, families, elderly, frail and disabled people nationwide. The Legion is always grateful for any help it receives.

I am pleased to say that local branches will be joining our sponsored Fun Walk on 23 May.