Crime
Crime is unacceptable and must not be tolerated. Our justice system must be reformed and made fit for purpose.
| The Peoples Party must: |
|---|
| through dramatically improved education, give the skills and create better opportunities so that crime is not seen as an economically attractive option |
| introduce new measures to deter and prevent crime, targeting those groups who are most likely to commit crime |
| robustly tackle dealing with mental care issues, “care in the community” failures are often responsible for violent crime |
| restore public confidence and trust in the police and criminal justice system |
| require a massive improvement in police performance and clear-up rates. Abysmal results should not be acceptable |
| completely remodel policing to reflect the changing nature of crime. Abolish the current policing structure, create a national police force within the BDF to work with intelligence services to target serious offences, organised crime and fraud, with local policing being much closer to the communities they serve, restoring the “bobby on the beat” |
| create a single Emergency Service, merging local police, fire and ambulance services and encourage personnel to multi-task, to provide a first responder service while preserving necessary specialisms |
| within the Emergency Service establish networks of local volunteers, to provide an immediate response to reports of antisocial behaviour and criminal activity |
| allow people to claim compensation if they are victims of crime and incentivise police officers to keep claims as low as possible |
| introduce a zero-tolerance approach to “minor” crime such as shoplifting, graffiti and bike theft, while abolishing “woke” offences such as hate speech |
| use new technology selectively and effectively to target criminal activity |
| decriminalise drugs, treating use as a medical and social problem. People should not have to resort to crime to secure drugs and associated treatment |
| cut the prison population by doing everything possible to avoid having to send people to prison in the first place |
| create a swift system to review miscarriages of justice cases |
| fundamentally change the criminal justice system so that career criminals are not released to commit new crimes |
| for career criminals and those whose crimes are such that they will never be released, look to establish overseas detention arrangements to reduce costs |
| set up a rehabilitation scheme for those prisoners who promise not to re-offend to give them one chance to “go straight”, and not release prisoners until they have a job |
| create a “a wipe the slate clean” pardon option for first-time offenders, avoiding giving people criminal records that can blight their life prospects |
| aim for “victory” against crime with a significant long term reduction in the cost of law and order as policies cut crime and the “criminal justice industry” |
| modernise the workings of the CPS, Crown and Magistrates' Courts. Justice delayed is justice denied. We must stop the unfair Single Justice Procedure |
| create a system of “Good Citizen Points” whereby people build up credits that can be spent to stop prosecution for minor offences that are “out of character” such as one-off speeding. Such a scheme would be retrospective, and allow for the reimbursement for past fines |
| stop the legal “gravy train” of endless Public Inquiries |
| provide an accessible route for justice that enables ordinary people to bring civil actions without incurring massive costs |
| dramatically reduce the ability of courts to review government decisions and the ability of lawyers to frustrate progress |
| make family courts and custody orders mother friendly - not arenas for parental conflict and huge legal bills |
| create a voluntary Single ID “card”, that will be useful merging all the different “cards” such as passport and driving licences and numbers such as PAYE and NHS, bank and membership “cards” etc. |
There are few genuinely villainous individuals and a relatively small number of hardened criminals. Despite this, police forces often have an abysmal clear up rate, allowing many career criminals to continue their activities without fear of being caught.
We must understand and address the root causes of crime, arrest offenders, and ensure they do not re-offend in the future. To do this effectively, we need to recognise that most crime is committed by vulnerable individuals who are inadequate for various reasons that require our attention. We imprison far too many people, which only creates additional problems for the future.
We must break the “revolving door” culture that leads to further crime and causes additional suffering and costs to society. We need to stop wasting resources on the crime “merry-go-round”; billions are spent unnecessarily on parole, probation, the costs of further crime, insurance, police, lawyers, and courts.
We must recognise that as crime evolves, law enforcement needs to adapt quickly to counter criminal activity. Online fraud is accounting for an increasing share of crime, yet hardly any resources are allocated to catching and stopping the perpetrators. Like with defence, maintaining existing models and approaches in the face of changing threats only leads to waste and inefficiency.
Our society is afflicted by a litigious culture, fuelled by lawyers. In one sense, it is hardly surprising given the number of lawyers in parliament. We need to break the grip of the legal system with decisive political action. Many of the measures we propose could be bogged down in legal argument; we cannot allow this to happen.