---

Violent Crime Reduction Bill

The Home Secretary offers the House yet another crime Bill. Violent crime is a massive problem, but this is a relatively minor and unambitious attempt to deal with it. It is the 11th anniversary later this week of the Prime Minister uttering the immortal words:"““Being tough on crime and tough on the causes of crime is not an empty slogan.””" How hollow those words must seem to the millions of people who have suffered violent crime and who, unlike the Prime Minister, live with the consequences of his broken promises. We all remember the examples of the Prime Minister’s grandiose promises, such as marching yobs to cash points. What happened to that brilliant piece of inspiration? It never happened. Setting up night courts, where victims are apparently too drunk to be dealt with, has also been abandoned. Then, there was a promise to halve street crime in just five months. If only. Do the Prime Minister and the Home Secretary think that the British people do not remember those promises? Since the Labour Government took office, violent crime has risen sharply. Britain now suffers more than 1 million violent crimes each year. Offences of violence against the person have increased by 90 per cent. and robberies by 50 per cent.—