The Anti-Social Behavior, Crime and Policing Bill will grant powers to police, local authorities, and even private security firms to restrict any activity deemed to have a “detrimental effect on the quality of life of those in the locality.” “Essentially what they’re attempting to do is give police the authority to make any lawful protest immediately illegal, simply because it “may, has, or is likely to cause nuisance or annoyance,” Kerry-Anne Mendoza, a campaigner against the Anti-Social Behavior Bill. The bill purports to “streamline” the governmental “toolkit” against disorderly conduct, by replacing nineteen of the powers with six new ones, such as enabling the arrest of intentional and persistent beggars and the “police dispersal power to direct people away from an area in order to prevent anti-social behavior.” One of the schemes the bill encompasses is the IPNA (Injunction to Prevent Nuisance and Annoyance) - a replacement for the Anti-Social Behavior Orders (ASBOs) which have fallen under repeated criticism since their introduction in 1998. The potential measures have already been condemned for their ambiguity and broad-reach, while having minimal checks and balances to protect civilians. “It allows police to bar people from what they call a ‘locality’ and ‘locality’ hasn’t been defined, it could be a city, a county, a country….nobody really knows,” The bill underwent its second hearing in the House of Lords last week and is expected to be enshrined in law by Christmas.
Posted on: Wed, 13 Nov 2013 11:22:04 +0000
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