Council Housing: Vandalism
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he has taken to help support local authorities in tackling criminal damage to council property.
Answered by Alison McGovern
Tackling anti-social behaviour (ASB) is a priority for this Government and a key commitment in the Government’s Plan for Change.
The Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 gives local authorities, as well as social landlords and the police, a wide range of powers and tools to tackle ASB, including Civil Injunctions, which are intended to stop or prevent individuals engaging in ASB, and Criminal Behaviour Orders, which can be issued by any criminal court against a person who has been convicted of an offence to tackle the most persistently anti-social individuals who are also engaged in criminal activity. The powers in the 2014 Act are deliberately broad in nature to enable flexibility and local discretion in their use.
The government is further strengthening powers to tackle ASB through the Crime and Policing Act by introducing Respect Orders, which will give local agencies stronger enforcement capability to tackle the most persistent ASB offenders, and extending the power to issue closure notices to registered social housing providers.
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