Pubdate: Fri, 25 Jan 2002
Source: Independent  (UK)
Copyright: 2002 Independent Newspapers (UK) Ltd.
Contact:  http://www.independent.co.uk/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/209
Author: Ian Burrell

BLUNKETT REJECTS 'ZERO TOLERANCE' POLICY ON CRIME

David Blunkett, the Home Secretary, will reject the "zero tolerance" 
approach to policing in a speech next week to the chief constables of 
England and Wales.

The message is the latest example of Mr Blunkett rejecting the more 
right-wing ideas of his predecessor, Jack Straw. It comes as the Home 
Secretary publishes his Police Bill today, designed to overhaul the service 
by improving efficiency and introducing thousands of uniformed civilian 
patrollers.

Mr Blunkett will tell police chiefs in London on Tuesday that he does not 
consider the zero-tolerance policy a " which involves police officers 
"aggressively" pursuing those responsible even for the most minor offences 
a " is appropriate to Britain.

A Home Office source said: "The Home Secretary does not subscribe to the 
zero tolerance idea. The tag will never fit in Britain.

"Mr Straw was happy to use the term when he announced his Crime and 
Disorder Bill in 1997. He said: "It's about implementing a zero tolerance 
strategy. It's not a magic wand. There are no magic wands about dealing 
with human behaviour. The more I am able to make people feel safer, the 
better it is.

"Mr Blunkett's rejection of the term "zero tolerance" follows his decision 
to do away with Mr Straw's programme of issuing vouchers to asylum-seekers, 
and his reversal of his predecessor's refusal to liberalise the laws on 
cannabis.
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MAP posted-by: Beth