Communities and Local Government/Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

I refer the hon. Gentleman to a parliamentary question that I tabled in July, and I will send him a copy of the reply that I received. We welcome measures to give parish councils more powers to pass by-laws enabling them to take action on antisocial behaviour and graffiti, but several questions remain unanswered. What calculations have been made of the cost of policing on-the-spot fines and of putting community support officers on the streets, and of the working capacity of the councils that will implement and manage those schemes? How far down the road of summary justice are we prepared to go? Of course we need to come down hard on problems such as graffiti and antisocial behaviour, but are there sufficient safeguards in place? Already, people who mix up their recycling or accidentally put their dustbins out on the wrong day are being fined. Surely we should be looking to the magistrates courts as the means of delivering prompt local justice, with the safety net of giving defendants a fair say. That was the courts’ original purpose, and the Government should be trying to restore that role.