Henry Smith MP has congratulated the Home Secretary, Rt Hon Theresa May MP, on her tough stance in tackling violent crime across the United Kingdom.  Mrs May has pledged an additional £500,000 to help communities confront the problem of youth violence.

The support is targeted at young people at risk of becoming violent offenders and those already involved in gang and knife crime, to encourage them onto a different path. 

Henry commented:

“Serious youth violence has a devastating impact on communities and needs to be stopped.  We need to change the life stories of the young people who too often end up dead or seriously injured on our streets or are sucked into a life of violence and crime.

“The latest police records for Crawley show that there were almost 2,000 recorded violent offences under the previous Government in 2009/10 and almost 20,000 more broadly across Sussex.  The Government’s package of support will, therefore, help police better protect communities from such serious offences as well as boost the innovative work being done at a local level by charities and voluntary groups to provide vulnerable youngsters with a way out.

“I also welcome the Government’s swift, no-nonsense approach towards foreign criminal activities in Great Britain.  More than 175 of the UK’s most prolific foreign national offenders have been removed in just a few months as a result of a joint operation by the UK Border Agency and the police.  Ministers have been clear that they will take all possible action against individuals who pose a risk to the public and remove them from the country at the earliest opportunity.

“The success of this operation proves that foreign nationals who continue to offend in this country will be arrested and removed from the UK.”