Christians say Blair’s ‘respect plan’ heading in wrong direction

-13/01/06

A leading


Christians say Blair’s ‘respect plan’ heading in wrong direction

-13/01/06

A leading childrenís charity, Evangelicals and progressive Christians have criticised Tony Blairís Respect Action Plan, suggesting it is heading in the wrong direction.

More than a dozen ministers launched the plan nationwide on Tuesday, after the Prime Minister gave a breakfast time speech in Downing Street and a series of TV interviews to unveil the 40-page programme of incentives and punishments across housing, schooling, the judicial system and parenting.

Measures include fines for anti-social behaviour, and giving local communities and police more powers to tackle truancy and evict nuisance neighbours.

Mr Blair said that the old structures of the criminal justice system were letting victims and the public down. ìWe need a radical new approach if we are to restore the liberty of the law-abiding citizen,î he said. ìTheir freedom to be safe from fear has to come first.î

But his claim that the action plan against anti-social behaviour represents a radical new approach was rubbished by the Childrenís Society reports the Church of England Newspaper. The charity condemned it as no more than ìa minor tweakingî of existing measures that have already been launched.

Bob Reitemeier, its Chief Executive, added that the effect of ìthe Governmentís existing policies, such as ASBOs, dispersal powers and curfews, have made many young people feel demonised, disrespected and alienated within their communitiesî. He said that the Government needed to show greater respect for young people and their rights if it was to gain their respect.

His comments were echoed by the Evangelical Alliance. David Muir, Public Policy Director at the Alliance said; ìRespect cannot be imposed on individuals or communities; it has to be taught and caught from the good example of those around us, including the Government.”

ìIf the Government is really serious about tackling the causes, rather than the incidence of anti-social behaviour and lack of ërespectí in society, it must do more to support agencies and groups who are seeking to mentor young people and families and instil values over the long term.î

The General Director of the Evangelical Alliance, Joel Edwards added; “Where respect goes missing, ASBOs appear.î

Other Christians, including the progressive Christian thinktank Ekklesia have also noted that the Prime Minister’s ‘radical new approach’ to criminal justice uses conservative old ideas of punishment and sanctions, rather than ‘restorative’ approaches. The latter methods, often aimed at bringing victim and offender together, have been shown both to cut re-offending rates and provide greater satisfaction for the victims of crime, leading to longer-term change.

The Children’s Society also warned against the use of ëshock tacticsí. Under the new plans, offenders who have been cautioned may be made to do unpaid work, and police will be given powers to shut down and seal properties occupied or used by yobs.

Oliver Letwin, the Conservative policy chief, agreed with Mr Reitemeier that the Prime Minister was rehashing already existing policies, and said that the action plan was ìboth pessimistic and rather superficial and short-termî. ìThe causes of what we are dealing with here are much deeper and we are not going to tackle them with on-the-spot fines,î he commented.


Christians say Blair’s ‘respect plan’ heading in wrong direction

-13/01/06

A leading children’s charity, Evangelicals and progressive Christians have criticised Tony Blair’s Respect Action Plan, suggesting it is heading in the wrong direction.

More than a dozen ministers launched the plan nationwide on Tuesday, after the Prime Minister gave a breakfast time speech in Downing Street and a series of TV interviews to unveil the 40-page programme of incentives and punishments across housing, schooling, the judicial system and parenting.

Measures include fines for anti-social behaviour, and giving local communities and police more powers to tackle truancy and evict nuisance neighbours.

Mr Blair said that the old structures of the criminal justice system were letting victims and the public down. ‘We need a radical new approach if we are to restore the liberty of the law-abiding citizen,’ he said. ‘Their freedom to be safe from fear has to come first.’

But his claim that the action plan against anti-social behaviour represents a radical new approach was rubbished by the Children’s Society reports the Church of England Newspaper. The charity condemned it as no more than ‘a minor tweaking’ of existing measures that have already been launched.

Bob Reitemeier, its Chief Executive, added that the effect of ‘the Government’s existing policies, such as ASBOs, dispersal powers and curfews, have made many young people feel demonised, disrespected and alienated within their communities’. He said that the Government needed to show greater respect for young people and their rights if it was to gain their respect.

His comments were echoed by the Evangelical Alliance. David Muir, Public Policy Director at the Alliance said; ‘Respect cannot be imposed on individuals or communities; it has to be taught and caught from the good example of those around us, including the Government.”

‘If the Government is really serious about tackling the causes, rather than the incidence of anti-social behaviour and lack of ërespect’ in society, it must do more to support agencies and groups who are seeking to mentor young people and families and instil values over the long term.’

The General Director of the Evangelical Alliance, Joel Edwards added; “Where respect goes missing, ASBOs appear.’

Other Christians, including the progressive Christian thinktank Ekklesia have also noted that the Prime Minister’s ‘radical new approach’ to criminal justice uses conservative old ideas of punishment and sanctions, rather than ‘restorative’ approaches. The latter methods, often aimed at bringing victim and offender together, have been shown both to cut re-offending rates and provide greater satisfaction for the victims of crime, leading to longer-term change.

The Children’s Society also warned against the use of ëshock tactics’. Under the new plans, offenders who have been cautioned may be made to do unpaid work, and police will be given powers to shut down and seal properties occupied or used by yobs.

Oliver Letwin, the Conservative policy chief, agreed with Mr Reitemeier that the Prime Minister was rehashing already existing policies, and said that the action plan was ‘both pessimistic and rather superficial and short-term’. ‘The causes of what we are dealing with here are much deeper and we are not going to tackle them with on-the-spot fines,’ he commented.