Local Member of Parliament, Robert Halfon, welcomed Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to Harlow today as part of his long-running campaign to make our streets safer. Alongside Essex Police Commissioner, Roger Hirst, Mr Halfon and the Prime Minister met with police officers in Harlow to hear how anti-social behaviour has fallen by almost 32% in the last 12 months.
The Prime Minister’s visit comes as the Government invests £66 million in police forces across the country to increase patrols and tackle anti-social behaviour. This is on top of the £1.2 million invested in Essex last year as a trailblazer project, resulting in anti-social behaviour across Harlow falling. Essex Police will receive at least a further £1 million to boost police patrols in anti-social behaviour hotspots in areas like the town centre and The Stow.
The funding is provided by central government as part of their Anti-Social Behaviour Strategy and will continue to deliver high visibility police patrols, public engagement, targeted youth outreach and early intervention. Alongside the funding, greater police powers to conduct stop and searches, seize dangerous weapons and impose immediate justice penalties where offenders are made to rectify damage within 48 hours will help to stop anti-social behaviour and make our streets safer.
More broadly, crime in Harlow is falling. Official figures released in December 2023 show that overall crime in Harlow fell by 4.3% in the last 12 months, with violence against the person, domestic abuse and hate crime falling by 16.4%, 27.7% and 11.9% respectively.
Commenting on the hotspot police patrols, Mr Halfon said, “It was great to welcome Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to Harlow this morning so he could see how our excellent Harlow police officers are putting a stop to anti-social behaviour through hotspot patrols.
“When I was re-elected in 2019, I pledged to make our streets safer. With 905 new police officers in Essex and 30 alone in Harlow since 2019, anti-social behaviour down by 31.6% and crime overall cut by 4.3%, our streets are getting safer and safer each day. However, there is more to be done and, working with Police Commissioner Roger Hirst, we will continue to step up patrols and grow our police force, tackling anti-social behaviour, toughening up sentences and penalties for offenders and delivering justice for victims.
“I would like to put on record my most sincere thanks to Chief Inspector Austin and all of the police officers and support staff at Essex Police in Harlow who work tirelessly to make our streets safer, protect our communities and bring offenders to justice.”
