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| Six more months for dispersal
zone |
But cops lose power to take under-16s
out alone home
CITY Hall and the Metropolitan Police have extended the country’s
largest dispersal zone for a further six months.
The controversial zone, which is bounded by Regent Street, Oxford
Street, Trafalgar Square and Charing Cross Road, gives the police
sweeping powers to order people to leave the area for up to 24 hours
or face charges.
The previous dispersal zone ran between May 7 this year and expired
on October 8. The new zone now runs until April 8.
But police no longer have the power to take teenagers under the
age of 16 home after the power was successfully challenged by a
15-year-old in Richmond earlier this year.
And it faced heavy criticism when it was introduced across the West
End last year.
Prominent critics included Richard Pulford, the chairman of the
Society of London Theatre, and Chris Hilton, the manager of the
Odeon Leicester Square, who feared that it would discourage families
from coming to the West End.
But in July the boy, known as W, challenged the legality of the
laws which gave police the power of arrest and forced teenagers
to come with them and the High Court ruled in the teenager’s
favour.
A spokeswoman for the Home Office said on Wednesday that they had
applied for leave to appeal to the Court of Appeal but no dates
have been set. But police forces cannot apply the measure again
unless an appeal is successful.
Superintendent Alaric Bonthron, of West End Central police station,
said: “We have had feedback from both residents and local businesses,
this order has had a positive effect on their daily lives and they
have expressed their support of our decision to continue the order.”
Councillor Audrey Lewis, Westminster’s cabinet member for community
protection, said: “The dispersal zone is proving to be a great
success, giving the police all the necessary powers to deal with
those wanting to come to the West End and cause trouble.” |
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Give power to the people
POST-war, early 1950s Britain was still experiencing food rationing
and was a disillusioning place for English gourmands. The war had
destroyed the restaurant trade and, with few exceptions, post-war
eateries made the worst of a bad situation.
FULL STORY
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