child education, children, mothers, family: 2007_03_01

Graffiti and Community Punishment

Tagging is a big problem across the city. It appears that the

government do not believe in prosecuting taggers unless they have done

damage of �5,000. The problem is that there is a simple community

punishment for taggers that will deter tagging - clear it up.

This is not about locking up a tagger for years. It is simply making

them clear up their mess. However, the government won't even do this.

John Hemming (Birmingham, Yardley) (LD): In Birmingham perhaps �1

million a year, and in my constituency perhaps �100,000 a year, is

spent on clearing up graffiti tagging, yet it seems to be the

Government's policy that unless someone does more than �5,000-worth of

damage, no more than a caution is necessary. Can we have a debate

about how we can

deter youths from tagging, perhaps by making them clear up the mess

that they create?

Mr. Straw: I can tell the hon. Gentleman what we will have a debate

about as soon as possible--Liberal Democrats saying one thing here and

a very different thing in their constituencies. Time and again they

criticise us for tough sentences and for introducing more offences,

and now this hon. Gentleman stands up to say that we should be doing

more, not less. I hope that he will talk to his leader and to those

who speak on home affairs for the Liberal Democrat party, and explain

to his constituents how time and again he votes for soft policies

here, and then parades himself in Birmingham as being in favour of

harder policies.

================================================================

The Labour approach is to continually go on about us "voting for soft

policies". As far as I am concerned requiring that we only punish the

guilty is not "soft" it is right. The party did not vote against Anti

Social Behaviour Orders. It is sensible to use more community

punishments, the example above is a good example. That is not a "soft"

policy.

In Yardley there have been two cases recently where people should have

received longer sentences for driving offences and one case where

someone given a sentence for arson should not have received such a

sentence.

The system is in a mess. Meaningless rhetoric does not help in solving

the problems.

posted by john � 12:56 PM 0 comments

Written Parliamentary Question: 1st March 2007

Dr. David Southall

Q:To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government

if she will ask local authorities to take steps to identify child

protection cases since 1981 to which they have been party where

requests for medical records were made by any party to the case to Dr.

David Southall and to report to her any such cases.

A:I have been asked to reply.

Child protection cases are the responsibility of local authorities and

the Government would not usually intervene in these matters.

(Parmjit Dhanda, Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for

Education and Skills)

posted by thomasjpaul � 11:41 AM 0 comments

Click Here for access to higher resolution versions of the photos The

license for use allows use of the photos by media as long as they are

attributed.

_________________________________________________________________

Contributors

* john

* Becky Trethewey

child education, children, mothers, family

Tuesday, 19 February 2008

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