Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to (a) help improve safety in Heywood and Middleton North constituency and (b) reduce crime.

Anti-Social Behaviour causes misery in towns and communities across the country, often hitting the most vulnerable hardest.

A key aim of our police reforms is to protect and revitalise neighbourhood policing. We are lifting national responsibilities off local forces, so they can focus on tackling local issues, like addressing anti-social behaviour.

Our Neighbourhood Policing Guarantee is already making a difference. For too long, people have not seen police patrolling their streets. We will have 3,000 additional neighbourhood officers in place by March this year, and our Summer Initiative and Winter of Action have seen police forces and local authorities in town centres, including Heywood and Middleton increase town centre patrols, accelerate enforcement, and make greater use of ASB powers.

We have also delivered on our manifesto pledge: every police force in England and Wales now has a dedicated lead officer for anti-social behaviour, who will work with communities to develop an action plan to tackle ASB. We are also strengthening the powers to tackle ASB. Our new Respect Orders will give local agencies stronger enforcement capability to tackle the most relentless ASB offenders.

Together with the police, we are sending a message: crime and anti-social behaviour will be punished.