PRESS RELEASE : What the PM’s action plan to tackle anti-social behaviour means for you [July 2023]

We’re making more progress on my plan to tackle anti-social behaviour. Here’s what that means:

More police in high crime areas

We’re increasing the police presence in areas with high rates of anti-social behaviour. Resources will be focused on locations like public transport and parks, helping to deter crimes from being committed in the first place.

Immediate punishment for vandals and drug-users

We’re making criminals pay for their crimes as soon as 48 hours after they’re been committed. Local police forces and victims get to decide on the punishment, but it should be visible to the public and, importantly, the local community will also get a say in what the punishment should be.

Offenders could be made to wash cars, clean up graffiti or litter-pick, whilst wearing high-vis vests.

These plans will be extended to all areas in England and Wales from 2024.

More money for better crime prevention

We’re giving an extra £60 million – that’s £1.4 million for every police force in the country – to have better crime prevention measures like CCTV, street lighting or community projects that combat anti-social behaviour. This will help prevent more burglaries and make streets safer for women and girls

Ridding our streets of chewing gum litter

More than 50 councils across the UK will receive £1.2 million to remove discarded chewing gum from our streets and prevent it from being littered again.

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“I made a promise in January that we will work tirelessly to crack down on anti-social behaviour. For too long, people have put up with it ruining their neighbourhoods.

These are not minor crimes. They disrupt people’s daily lives, hold businesses back and erode the sense of safety and community that brings people together.

That’s why I’m bringing forward a new plan to crack down on this behaviour once and for all – so that everyone can feel proud of where they live.

This is how the new measures will affect you.

I’m bringing in tougher punishments for criminals

Those responsible for offences such as vandalism or graffitiing will start cleaning up their crimes as quickly as possible, aiming for offenders to start work within 48 hours of receiving an order.

Victims and affected communities will also get a say in deciding what type of punishment or consequences offenders should face, alongside input from local police and crime commissioners.

We are banning nitrous oxide

We will ban nitrous oxide, also called laughing gas, putting an end to litter and intimidation in our parks so people feel safer.

We will test more criminals for illegal drugs

The police will also now be able to drug test criminals who take illegal drugs like ecstasy and methamphetamine, and we will drug test offenders who have committed a wider range of crimes, like violence against women and girls, serious violence, and anti-social behaviour.

We’re introducing tougher fines for litter, graffiti and fly-tipping

We are increasing he upper limit on fines for littering and graffitiing from £150 to £500 and fines for fly-tipping will increase from £400 to £1,000.

We will also support councils to hand out more of these fines to disrespectful offenders, with councils keeping these fines to reinvest in clean up and enforcement.

We’re making evictions of anti-social tenants easier

We are aiming to make it quicker for private landlords to evict anti-social tenants after serving notice, as well as broaden the disruptive and harmful activities that can lead to eviction.

We will also strengthen rules so previous anti-social behaviour perpetrators are deprioritised for new council housing.

By establishing a zero-tolerance approach where offenders know they will face the full consequences of their actions – we can prevent more of these crimes from happening in the first place.

I am determined to tackle these crimes with the urgency they deserve, restoring your confidence that these will be quickly and visibly punished.”

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak