Report to the People
10th July 2006
Turn on the Powers
You’d
be forgiven for allowing yourself a brief smile when you read about the Dundee
drug criminal whose ten flats, fat bank accounts, cash, savings plans and
pension policies were confiscated under the Proceeds of Crime Act.
It always gives you a sense of satisfaction to hear about serious
criminals’ ill-gotten gains being seized and invested back into the
communities they tried to bleed dry.
As
the Lord Advocate said, this latest case shows that good use is being made of
the new powers to seize all types of property.
Sadly,
though, the same cannot be said for all the measures which politicians have
recently passed.
For
example, the new antisocial behaviour powers, which communities like ours
demanded and which I and other MSPs fought to see enacted, are still not being
properly used - especially here.
According
to the Scottish Executive’s latest antisocial behaviour newsletter, as of
March 2006, not one single noise nuisance warning or fixed penalty notice had
been issued in Inverclyde. Dispersal
notices, ASBOs on conviction and ASBOs for 12 to 15-year-olds are similarly
notable by their absence. The
Greenock courts, though, are playing their part, issuing 9 Community Reparation
Orders.
With
long summer evenings and the school holidays in full swing, this is the time of
year when, more than ever, antisocial behaviour needs to be kept in check.
And, as the success of the Proceeds of Crime Acts shows, the best results
come when you use all the powers at your disposal.
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