Political Opinion: Steve Yemm MP welcomes summer blitz on town centre crime and antisocial behaviour in Mansfield

The blitz, which will put officers on patrol during peak times, has been welcomed by Steve Yemm, Labour MP for Mansfield.

Mansfield is among more than 500 towns across the country that have signed up to the Home Secretary’s Safer Streets summer crackdown. The plan will bring more visible patrols and stronger enforcement by local police, councils and safety partners.

Under the previous government, shoplifting surged to record levels, rising by 70 percent in the last two years of Tory rule. Recent data shows that nationally, there has been a further 20% increase.

Local Police and Crime Commissioner, Gary Godden, has, with other Commissioners, drawn up targeted plans with councils, police and businesses to support thriving town centres where people feel safe to live, work and visit.

The plans include more officers on foot in high streets, tougher enforcement against repeat offenders, and stronger powers to tackle antisocial behaviour. That includes banning perpetrators from hotspot areas.

Fourteen years of Conservative cuts hollowed out neighbourhood policing. PCSO numbers were halved and Special Constables were cut by two-thirds.

The summer blitz is part of the Labour Government’s Plan for Change, which will deliver 13,000 new neighbourhood police officers and PCSOs over this Parliament. It includes a £200 million boost for year one. Nottinghamshire Police will receive its share of that funding this year.

Alongside enforcement, the summer initiative includes extra activities for young people across participating towns, helping to prevent crime and support safe spaces over the holidays.

A new Tackling Retail Crime Together Strategy will also launch, using shared data to disrupt both organised gangs and individual repeat offenders, including those stealing to fund addiction.

Steve Yemm, Labour MP for Mansfield, said: “The Conservatives gutted neighbourhood policing and let crimes like shoplifting spiral out of control. It is communities like Mansfield that paid the price for that failure.

I welcome this summer crackdown. People in Mansfield deserve high streets that are safe and welcoming. This plan puts officers back on the beat, helps stop repeat offenders, and brings real backing to our town centre.”