Policing pledge as thug fines collapse

Alarming drop in penalty notices compared to 2007

- David Williamson

THIEVES, vandals and hoodlums are now getting off scot-free due to a collapse in on-the-spot fines for anti-social behaviour, the new Home Secretary has warned.

Fewer than 7,200 penalty notices were issued for acts of public disorder in 2023 down from a record 207,544 in Tony Blair's last year in office in 2007.

For some individual minor crimes, the penalty notice figures from 2007 are more than 100 times higher.

The Government is pledging to hire 13,000 additional neighbourhood police and PCSOs, amid a drive to "take back our streets" and "rebuild confidence".

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: "These shocking figures show exactly what happens when Tory Prime neighbourhood Ministers cut policing to the bone.