Sam Townend for Bristol North West

The turnout for the public meeting to discuss crime in Crow Lane, Henbury was very impressive.  The strength of feeling palpable.  As a victim of crime in Henbury myself I personally shared residents views.

There were, however, two disappointing elements.  First, neither of the two local Councillors were invited to sit or speak from the platform.  Instead the only politicians on the platform were my would-be Conservative opponent and the Conservative Council candidate.  Both unelected and without powers.  This was disappointing and lent a party political edge to a meeting that could otherwise have been quite productive.  The second problem, perhaps linked to the first, was that at the end no summing up took place, no actions were set out, no way forward given, no further meeting even agreed.  So while it was a good opportunity to hear residents views and it focused the minds of the authorities including the police on Henbury, unfortunately I doubt that anything long lasting will come from the meeting, despite the hard work put in by the organisers and speakers and the strong feelings of all of us who attended.

What we do need to do, in my view, is, as a start, ensure that the Government’s Police Pledge, including that officers spend 80% of their time on the beat rather than doing paperwork, is kept to.  Secondly, ensure that the police have both the resources and the powers they need to tackle the anti social behaviour that makes the lives of some residents such a misery.  Dedicated neighbourhood policing numbers in Henbury and throughout Bristol are now at their highest ever figure.  That trend must continue if we are finally to turn the corner on anti social behaviour.

Sam Townend

Labour’s parliamentary candidate,

Bristol North West