Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Bill

Written evidence from Inspector Jim Tyner (ASB 58)

1. I am the Community Policing Inspector for Spalding in Lincolnshire. We have a particular problem with day-time street-drinking linked to anti-social behaviour. The area is covered by a Designated Public Places Order (DPPO).

2. I write to request that consideration is given to amending clause 59 of the Bill (and explanatory notes).

3. The current legislation covering DPPOs, under Section 12 Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001 states:-

(1) Subsection (2) applies if a Constable reasonably believes that a person is, or has been, consuming alcohol in a designated public place or intends to consume alcohol in such a place.

(2) The Constable may require the person concerned :-

(a) Not to consume in that place anything which is, or which the Constable reasonably believes to be, alcohol ;

(b) To surrender anything in his possession which is, or which the Constable reasonably believes to be, alcohol or a container for alcohol .

4. Under the current legislation, a person who fails without reasonable excuse to comply with a requirement imposed on him under subsection (2) commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 2 on the standard scale .

5. There is currently no power to issue a Penalty Notice for Disorder (PND) for drinking in breach of the DPPO. While we can issue a PND if someone fails to comply with our request, a person drinking within the DPPO area is not enough - all we can do is remind drinkers that they are in a no-drinking zone, confiscate the alcohol and pour it away.

6. The current legislation does not allow for the feelings amongst members of the public that groups drinking in the street are considered anti-social in their own right. Invariably persons found drinking surrender their alcohol upon request so there is no power to issue a PND. A game of ‘cat and mouse’ then ensues when persons simply go and obtain more alcohol and the procedure starts all over again.

7. Clause 59 of the new Anti-Social Behaviour , Crime & Policing Bill introduces Public Places Protection Orders to replace DPPOs. The Bill states:

This section applies where a Constable or an authorised person reasonably believes that a person (P):-

a) Is or has been consuming alcohol in breach of a prohibition in a public spaces protection order, or

b) Intends to consume alcohol in circumstances in which doing so would be a breach of such a prohibition.

In this section "authorised person" means a person authorised for the purposes of this section by the local authority that made the public spaces protection order (or authorised by virtue of section 65(1)).

(2) The Constable or authorised person may require P:-

a) Not to consume, in breach of the order, alcohol or anything which the Constable or authorised person reasonably believes to be alcohol;

b) To surrender anything in P’s possession which is, or which the

Constable or authorised person reasonably believes to be, alcohol or a container for alcohol.

8. Apart from the introduction of powers granted to an ‘authorised person’ the wording of this section is virtually identical to that of the DPPO legislation.

9. Every week in the local media I receive feedback from members of the public that one of the main drawbacks of the current DPPO legislation is that people feel that the police should be granted powers to issue PNDs for drinking in a DPPO.

10. I have read the explanatory notes to the new Bill. Paragraph 149, covering the introduction of Public Space Protection orders explains that Clause 59 (above) provides that breach of the order only occurs when an individual does not cease drinking or surrender alcoholic drinks when challenged by an enforcement officer.

11. There is an important safeguard that, where there is no threat of anti-social behaviour, they need not challenge the individuals, for example a family picnic with a bottle of wine.

12. However, feedback from my police officers, PCSOs and from members of the public is that we are disappointed that there is still no power to issue a PND for drinking in breach of a Public Space Protection Order.

13. I would ask the Public Bill Committee to consider amending Clause 59 so that if a person is found drinking in breach of a Public Space Protection Order, then Breach of the order, without reasonable excuse, is a criminal offence, subject to a fixed penalty notice (of £100) (clause 64) or prosecution. On summary conviction, an individual would be liable to a fine not exceeding £1,000.

14. The explanatory note that a breach only occurs when an individual does not cease drinking should be reconsidered. This effectively prevents an authorised person from taking positive action. The feedback I have received from members of the public is that the ability to issue PNDs when a breach has occurred would have a significant impact on the amount of street drinking that takes place. There is already a safeguard for an authorised person to use their discretion (as per point 10 above)

15. The ability to issue PNDs in the first instance would be an important introduction to the ‘toolkit’ for tackling anti-social behaviour.

July 2013