THE worst neighbours in Manchester are to be rooted out under a plan to turn them into model citizens.
Tony Blair today named the city as one of 10 'trailblazer' areas across the country which will lead the fight on anti-social behaviour.
Under the scheme, 150 of the most disruptive households in Manchester will be identified by experts from social services, education, the police and other agencies.
The yobs who agree to clean up their act will be offered anything from new housing, to help in getting their children to school. Those who refuse to mend their ways could be fined if their children do not show up at school.
They could also face compulsory parenting lessons or be thrown out of their homes.
The plan was revealed by Mr Blair and Home Secretary David Blunkett at the launch of a national crackdown on anti-social behaviour. It is part of the prime minister's attempt to shift the spotlight from the row over Iraq weapons back to domestic policy.
Today's proposals will be tested in 10 cities, including Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham.
Problems
Four areas will focus on nuisance neighbours while the others will target problems including abandoned cars and aggressive begging.
Local crime reduction partnerships in areas not chosen as trailblazers will tackle similar problems.
The measures will be followed by an anti-social behaviour Bill, which should become law by the New Year and contains tough new powers to control nuisance behaviour.
Home office minister and Salford MP Hazel Blears said: "This is now the top priority for the whole of government policy.
"Manchester has agreed to deal with 150 of the most challenging households by March 2005. There is no point just moving these families around - we have to get them to change their ways. There will be really intensive work to alter how they live. In many cases they will want to change.
"There will be tough enforcement if they are not prepared to change. In the Anti-Social Behaviour Bill there are compulsory parenting orders and fixed penalty notices about truancy.
"Manchester has already shown it is on the side of the decent majority."
Manchester council will get £650,000 extra over the next three years to phase in the scheme.
The city was chosen for its pioneering work fighting nuisance neighbours.
Sentences
The town hall has won 184 anti-social behaviour orders - civil orders that can result in jail sentences if broken. That is twice as many as anywhere else in Britain.
Deputy council leader Kath Robinson said: "We need to break the cycle of bad behaviour and support people in difficulty by intervening early.
"The government likes what we are doing already and is giving us money to broaden that. This is about helping people learn to respect each other and realise bad behaviour is not acceptable."
Steve Mycio, the council's deputy chief executive and chairman of Manchester's crime and disorder partnership, said: "We have shown we are prepared and will continue to take tough action against the worst neighbours.
"We recognise that in some families the problems are deep and varied, and if we are to change their behaviour for the better, we need a more comprehensive and wide-ranging approach.
"That is what the trailblazer will allow us to do."
At the launch of the crackdown Mr Blair told police that they had been given extra powers to deal with yobs and it was now time to use them.
"We owe it to the victims of anti social behaviour, often the poorest in society, to get our act together," he added. "No excuses, no ifs and buts, enforcement is what we need. It is not acceptable for powers such as Anti Social Behaviour Orders to be used in some parts of the country and not others.
Gangs
"Loutish behaviour is loutish behaviour wherever it occurs."
Mr Blunkett said today that yobbish behaviour could lead to more serious crime involving gangs with guns unless firm action was taken.
He said: "The government is determined to tackle the scourge of anti-social behaviour which is spreading fear through your community and holding back prosperity."
He said that part of the latest crackdown would be to give police power, in co-operation with local councils, to break up and disperse "gang" members once they began to gather.
"We have got to get tough with people. There's no excuse - I was brought up on the estates I now represent and we didn't say we were bored and therefore we'll create mayhem and make other people's lives a misery.
"We're not going to put up with it".
He said that while there was a big difference between nuisance and anti-social behaviour and gun crime in cities such as Manchester, there were links."
A survey carried out by the Home Office showed that in one day last month local agencies dealt with more than 60,000 reports of anti social behaviour and vandalism - more than one report every two seconds.
What do you think? Will the new measures be enough? Submit your comments or take part on our online poll below.
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its about time the goverment took action into anti-social behaviour also a crack down on local yobs that make other peoples life a misery the police should be able to give theses concerned a jail sentence
I don't pretend to know what the answer is. However, it's crystal clear that the majority of the right-thinking public would like these people to stop making their lives miserable, even if that means removing them.
The problem is that the people responsible are often either too dim or too ignorant to actually realise what they're like. It's a fact that most of them just don't care.
I do a lot of walking, and sometimes I may take a short cut through a typical sink estate. You do see some houses where no doubt the occupants are decent people, and you see the efforts they make to improve their own environment. However, the streets are just strewn with rubbish, dog faeces, old mattresses, dumped bikes, rusted prams etc. This has nothing to do with poverty. It is just plain dirty, and shows ignorance, and apathy in the extreme.
If they want to live in such squalor, then perhaps they should really have their own housing estates, preferably with a 20 foot wall and barbed wire surrounding them. Yes, it is a ridiculous suggestion, but it would suit a ridiculous situation.
The only real answer to dealing with the type of person causing the probelm the government is hoping to stop, is to make sure they are unable to procreate.
my mother and father have had nuisance neighbours for 4 years they are both on the verge of a nervous breakdown. they together with a few other neighbours have tried everything they could to do somthing about it,but failed.the police are a waste of time,the council are a waste of time,hazel blears has got involved she and other m.ps have all been a total waste of time.now matter what laws or bills are passed i think my parents will still be banging their heads against a brick wall.the system stinks!!
I'm all for tough action against those that destroy communities, it is long overdue, but we must also take a look at the underlining causes.My community has some of the worst provision for youth recreation in the country, therefore, local kids are forced to make their own entertainment, with the obvious results.Its been proven time and time again, provide facilities, and anti social behaviour drops, its about time all the school fields that have been sold off to private developers were replaced with an alternative resource.
I have been a victim of anti-social behaviour on more than one occasion. Where I live people don't go out at night because they are harrassed and any reports to the police seem to be relayed back to the trouble makers who then target your property. It seems to be the case of the criminal gets more protection by the law than the victims. The police seldom enforce these new laws from my experience. People will be driven to buy guns to defend themselves. I am personally investing in a legal alternative which is a permanent non-toxic foam filled gas cannister as a last resort attack defence. Marked the culprits!