Crackdown on antisocial behaviour continuing following in Cumbria

The winter of action campaign is continuing in Cumbria, as the police and local authority continue to crack down on anti-social behaviour throughout the county.

The Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood, announced plans to tackle things like shoplifting and antisocial behaviour with a new wave of police patrols on high streets.

According to Mahmood, these issues are increasingly impacting communities, prompting the government to take action as part of a wider crime prevention strategy.

By spring, 3,000 additional police officers are expected to be deployed across the country, with the aim of catching offenders and enhancing public safety.

Mahmood said: "Shoplifting and antisocial behaviour are tearing at the fabric of our communities.

"This winter we are launching a crime-fighting blitz with police patrolling our high streets across the country.

"This is part of our wider plans to fight crime with 3,000 more police on the beat by the spring to catch criminals and make our communities safe."

Here in Cumbria, we've been hearing what that actually translates into.

Police and Crime Commissioner David Allen said: "We can do enforcement all day every day and it will never change a thing. It takes some of the problem away, it takes the people away, but it does not actually fix the issue. But if you get in there and you look at preventative work, that's what makes a difference long term.

"I use the example of a taxi rank. We solved a problem of disorder there that was happening on a nightly basis. Simply putting a fence in so that people lined up properly. Dead simple stuff, relatively cheap, prevents a lot of court time, a lot of disorder and a lot of arrests.

"The biggest issue that people wrote in about was anti-social behaviour. Disorder on the street, people fighting, the stuff that bothers people on a real granular level, a local level.

"Nobody wants to see piles of vomit, disorder and people fighting on the street."