19 December 2008, 08/290
Tackling alcohol related crime in run-up to Christmas
and New Year
Don’t wake up with more than a hangover to pay for this
Christmas is the message in a festive campaign to tackle
drink-related crime!
The West Lancashire Community Safety Partnership (of which the
District Council is the lead agency) is supporting Operation
Shepherd, which is a campaign to tackle and prevent alcohol related
crime and anti social behaviour in the run-up to Christmas and New
Year.
At this time of year people tend to over-indulge during the
party season and this can lead to many criminal activities.
So this initiative aims to reduce violent crime, criminal damage
and domestic violence, which is sometimes fuelled by alcohol. It
also promotes personal safety, fire safety and keeping property and
possessions safe during the festive period.
As a result the Partnership is already running a domestic
violence campaign to increase awareness of abuse at this peak time
of year for incidents. CCTV monitoring is also being stepped up
over the festive period to catch out offenders. Extra measures are
also being taken to crack down on mindless vandalism and nuisance
behaviour that causes hurt or injury, such as positive activities
for young people and regular meetings with residents in hotspot
areas to see how problems can be tackled.
The Partnership’s big message for the festive season is also for
people to drink sensibly, in moderation and know their own
limits.
Cllr Paul Greenall, Portfolio Holder for Community Safety, said:
"Whilst West Lancashire remains one of the safest places to live
and socialise, Operation Shepherd is an additional resource to help
us maintain this safety. As we all know, when the party season is
upon us, some people seem to throw caution to the wind and drink a
bit too much. We don’t want to be killjoys but the important
message to remember is to drink sensibly and know your limits or
else there could be a higher price to pay than just a
hangover!"
There will be a range of other interventions including high
visibility police patrols, focusing on proxy sales to underage
drinkers, visiting licensed premises and other multi-agency
tactics.
Bill Taylor, Chairman of the West Lancashire Community Safety
Partnership, said: "We know that at this time of year there is a
lot of alcohol fuelled crime, such as violent incidents, criminal
damage and anti social behaviour. This initiative sends out a clear
message that it will not be tolerated and is part of our continuing
commitment to combat crime and disorder and the fear of crime
across the district."
Inspector Mark Porter said:"Over the festive period, there is
often an increase in crime and anti-social behaviour which is
fuelled by alcohol. Operation Shepherd is a campaign which aims to
reduce incidents of alcohol related crime and disorder during this
time by encouraging people to drink sensibly. Our aim is to
encourage people to think about how they behave after drinking
alcohol and motivate them to think twice before having that extra
drink."
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