§ 13 Mr. BakerIf he will meet the chief constable of the Sussex police force to discuss levels of crime. [20169]
§ Mr. MichaelI am always willing to discuss such matters with chief officers, and I do so regularly. I have met the chief constable of Sussex on a number of occasions, both in his role as chief constable and as a representative of the Association of Chief Police Officers. I have met him in the police force area—I recently visited Brighton police station—and I also met him in November at the Home Office.
§ Mr. BakerIs the Minister aware that in my constituency there is an epidemic of vandalism? Although there is a drop in the number of other, more serious crimes, all four major towns—Seaford, Polegate, Newhaven and Lewes—are affected by vandalism, which is causing an undue fear of crime among the population at large. What steps will the Minister take to deal with the epidemic of vandalism, as a result of which the windows of one chemist shop in Seaford were smashed seven times in a number of weeks? I saw the chemist on Saturday. Will the Minister speak to his colleagues about the operation of the Crown Prosecution Service, which seems to be reluctant to prosecute anyone whom the police charge with vandalism offences?
§ Mr. MichaelThe hon. Gentleman refers to a number of problems in relation to which we are introducing reforms, specifically in relation to the Crown Prosecution Service. Through the Crime and Disorder Bill, we shall introduce various sentences and the partnership approach, which is intended to address the hon. Gentleman's point that vandalism can build up to the more serious and violent crimes that are the scourge of modern society. Violent crime has increased by 13 per cent. in the Sussex area, and I would not be surprised if the problems to which the hon. Gentleman refers were related to that increase in more serious crimes.