‘Bad behaviour must be punished’

Preventing antisocial behaviour has to go hand-in-hand with action
to deal with offences, the head of the government’s antisocial
behaviour unit has urged.

Louise Casey told delegates: “Talking about prevention is the easy
part but we forget that along with prevention there has to be
enforcement.”

She said perpetrators of antisocial behaviour should be held
“accountable for their actions” and offered support to change their
behaviour.

Casey added: “If you write graffiti on the wall you clean it off.
It is a simple approach that works well but it sometimes doesn’t
get done.”

She also warned agencies against endlessly consulting local
communities who were experiencing antisocial behaviour.

“We can’t keep asking questions about it, we need to do something
about it,” she said.