More conviction needed. Less convictions

Jacqui Smith made Home Secretary without first running a large Department which is unlike pretty much any Home Sec in history. In fact her previous post of Chief Whip usually excludes the holder from taking a large portfolio. Her inexperience certainly shows. Her first blunder was to suck up to the Treasury over a paltry £40m police wage increase. As Gerald Kaufman said in his well-regarded book 'How to be a Minister' - Lesson number one - defend your Department.

Of course, Jacqui lost a huge amount of responsibility (prisons, probation, ) to the new Justice Ministry and immigration is now an arms-length style agency. But she still holds the youth offending file and although all measures of crime are showing significant falls there has been a recent hysterical response to young people.

In the east police are being advised to openly follow, film and harrass young people. Check out the copper in this film.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/7518506.stm.

Jacqui said this," I want police to focus on them by giving them a taste of their own medicine: daily visits, repeated warnings and relentless filming of offenders to create an environment where there is nowhere to hide." This policy, if you can call it that, may satisfy some inner neurotic desire to shackle young wide boys but doesn't say a lot about her knowledge of human behaviour. The young thug is hardly going to be persuaded to lead a more constructive life by being bullied by a few half-witted woodentops.

This weekend she was at it again advising the general public to have-a-go when they see a crime taking place. Boris Johnson took a different view when he said, "don't get involved, move away." It is another compelling sympton of Labour's terminal decline that 'Bonkers' Johnson has got a better grip of issues such as street crime than the Home Secretary.

Norfolk's Tony Martin was held up as a hero defending his property. But when the detail of his case emerged he didn't come out as noble or valiant but somewhat deluded. Apparently he would lie in bed fully clothed with a shotgun beside him. When Martin murdered that 16 year old burglar he was running away terrified and was shot in the back. That is not the proportionate action of a brave man. But Jacqui would not agree.