Do you remember how “Our Jeremy’ made a big issue about his personal fight against anti-social behaviour – during the General Election – of course!
There he was schmoozing with the locals around Farncombe and Godalming telling them all how he leading the fight against ASB, and making it his his personal crusade. The crusade that the residents of Farncombe & Godalming had been addressing for many months through public meetings, and meetings with their borough councillors, Surrey’s Police & Crime Commissioner David Monro and the local bobbies.
So was the comeback kid, there posting leaflets through the doors of his residents with the stalwarts pictured below. You bet your bottom teenager he wasn’t!
More likely sniffing around Westminster looking for a new post, that would give him enough time to earn another entrepreneurial crust and spend more quality time with his family. Now’s the time to step up to the mark Jeremy – you hold the power now use it!
After all Election won – game over!
Antisocial Behaviour – Update Jan 24th
Good evening everyone. A lot more comments tonight and a little bit over the last week (with a couple of really notable instances that the police are following up on).
I am here to serve the community as best I can, and in that spirit have tried to use what position I have in our town and borough councils to ASSIST the bodies that have legal and financial responsibility for the police (the police and crime commissioner and our MP) to do what they can for our area.
Criminalisation of minors for antisocial behaviour should not be a first resort, but that can and will happen (and has happened) where the police have sufficient evidence and justification to do so. I want to be clear that although I do not think it a proper first resort, it should happen when merited. You can see from page 1 of the leaflet that has happened.
And of course where we are talking about serious escalation of that (such as Arson) there is no question in my mind about a need for police action.
In Farncombe and some of Binscombe we have delivered a leaflet to residents updating them on some of the progress, and for those outside that area the link below is a copy of that leaflet.
But can I please, please make a request of residents. Write to Mr Munro, the Police and Crime Commissioner. Write to our MP, Jeremy Hunt. These people are the ones responsible here. Ask them about police resource, and about cuts to the other services (such as youth services) that contribute to crime and especially to ASB.
I’m not the sort of person that will argue the borough and town should just stick to its own business and responsibilities because it’s politically ‘safer’ for us to do so.
I also respect that some residents are frustrated by this. Some will get frustrated at me – because it’s me that is here for you to be annoyed at.
I get frustrated as I can’t instantly fix this for you.
Part of why I stood for parliament here where I live was to try to be in a position to do more.
But I have to ask, would residents prefer the town and borough councils and the councillors to be silent on this issue (because it is technically not our responsibility?) I don’t think that is the morally right thing to do but would like to understand residents views on that?
But the entities responsible for policing need to hear from you too. You need to ask them why they are not here to hear your frustration too.
Happy to discuss as always.
https://www.waverley.gov.uk/…/farncombe_resident_update_jan…
Farnham also has an ASB problem. For the 12 month period ending November 2019, Police reported crime figures for Farnham’s Town Centre make horrendous reading. They include:
Anti-Social Behaviour x 249,
Criminal Damage x 114,
Public Order x 104
Violence x 283
And that’s just the crimes that were reported!
BUT what makes this situation even worse is that “No Further Action” was taken on 73% of these crimes. Leaflets and Committees are all very well, but we need feet on the ground at the crime hot spots. Especially when the pubs churn out hundreds of drunken youths in the early hours of the morning! Having said that….most people disperse and go home quietly. It’s just a minority that cause the trouble.
Hopefully when the new Police and Crime Commissioner is elected on 7 May, he will get to grips with the inability of the Police to tackle this.
Happy to highlight this to some of the Farnham councillors who may wish to do something like I have been doing in Godalming.
Sounds as though we need to same sort of action here in Farnham as you have been promoting in Godalming & Farncombe.
These semi-rural stockbroker belt county towns appear to be suffering from the same problems as the inner-cities. We need more police cover – and fast. Perhaps our MP is onto it?