TWO weeks ago, I outlined the local issues of anti-social behaviour I heard during my Community Conversations, and the steps I believe are necessary to tackle this together. I heard local people’s concerns about public safety loud and clear.

Since coming into office, this Labour government has implemented measures up and down the country to help rid our towns of unscrupulous behaviour. Backed by a record £18.4-billion investment, we have already put more than 3,000 more neighbourhood police on our streets and are recruiting 13,000 more over this Parliament. Constituents will know from those Community Conversations that I also committed to bring forward Respect Orders and other new legal tools to enable the Police to do what they need to more effectively.

I’m please to say that, since those sessions, the Home Office has now confirmed the introduction of those Respect Orders will take place from October 26, making them another tool in our arsenal to stamp out anti-social behaviour in St Austell and Newquay.

Unlike previous measures, civil injunctions and ASBOs, Respect Orders carry the crucial enforcement teeth needed to disrupt and deter persistent ASB offenders. In practice, this means concretely that someone who continues to harass residents, engage in drunk-and-disorderly behaviour in town centres, intimidate shop workers, vandalise public spaces, or repeatedly cause nuisance in our neighbourhoods will receive the appropriate repercussions.

For example, offenders could be restricted from entering particular areas, associating with certain individuals, or be prohibited from engaging in further anti-social behaviour.

We agreed in my Community Conversations that local authorities are, in theory, best placed to understand the challenges we are up against, and to help determine the best course of action. These new measures also widen the scope of organisations able to deal with anti-social behaviour. Local authorities and the police, as well as relevant housing providers or the Environment Agency, will be emboldened to apply for Respect Orders where they see anti-social behaviour affecting our communities.

However, the most crucial break from the existing measures is that breaching a Respect Order will now constitute a criminal offence, sending a clear message that those who consistently flout the law will feel the full force of it.

For residents, this means fewer recidivists, safer public spaces and greater confidence that persistent offenders are being held to account. For businesses, it means protective steps towards a thriving high street. For communities, it means revitalising our town centres, parks and neighbourhoods from the small minority whose behaviour blights daily life for everyone else.

Whilst the law must be applied with an iron fist, lasting change must also call for us to examine the underlying causes of offending behaviour. With Respect Orders allowing civil courts to attach positive rehabilitation programmes onto sentencing, perpetrators may be required to engage with rehabilitation programmes to address the root causes of their actions.

The constituents I spoke to were clear that they wanted action. With their prohibitions and positive rehabilitations, Respect Orders are not a silver bullet, but they are a significant step towards stamping out anti-social behaviour.