This report today in the Daily Telegraph. We reprint it in full. We don't think it needs any alteration or comment from us.
"A police chief has admitted that he was forced to move house by youths hanging around outside his home
Supt.Wayne Mawson, who is in his 40s, said that he decided to leave because he did not want to confront the teenagers sitting on the wall of his property in Hackney, east London. The officer, the head of operations in Haringey, North London, said that the youths had made him nervous about returning from work. Supt.Mawson confessed that he had given in to them.
The Metropolitan Police high-flyer, who will earn about £70,000 a year, said: "I gave in to them because it was either that or start challenging them. My quality of life has improved massively since then."
Supt.Mawson made the admission during a neighbourhood watch meeting in Crouch End, North London, as he highlighted the crucial role that safer neighbourhood teams play. "They are not only about the big stuff, but also about looking after situations like this, serving the everyday needs of our community," he said.
Supt Mawson also warned that a terrorist attack was likely to happen again. He said: "An attack will happen again in London. The big trials show us that there are people in Haringey involved in the terrorism world. It's not about scaring people. It's about raising awareness and making the borough as safe as we can. It's impossible to stereotype a terrorist, so we have to be alert to all possibilities."
Last month, Jacqui Smith, the Home Secretary, said that she was too scared to walk in London alone after dark. Asked whether she would go out by herself at night in Hackney, she told a Sunday newspaper: "No, why would I do that? But I never would have done, at any point in my life. I just don't think it's a thing that people do. I wouldn't walk around at midnight. I'm fortunate that I don't have to do so."
Supt.Mawson's admission comes amid concern about increasing violence by teenage gangs. Last week, a court heard how a father of two was kicked unconscious after asking a group of youths to be quiet outside his home in Maltby, South Yorkshire. Gary Yeomans, 44, said that he was lucky to be alive following the attack that left him seriously ill in hospital. Last August, Garry Newlove, a father of three, was kicked to death by a gang of youths outside his home in Warrington, Cheshire, after he confronted them about vandalism."
And here are some of the comments from Telegraph readers …
• If a senior policeman runs away from yobs and thugs, what chance ordinary people have in the streets of UK? is this police officer still employed? And why is Jackie Smith still Home Minister? Until UK Joe public understand/accept that only way is to get rid off failing and incompetent public officials, this situation will remain. This applies to everything from failing police, politicians (MPs, MEP's, councillors), bureaucrats, councillors, Rover, expenses fiddles of MP's, MEP's , Councillors, Northern Rock, Philip Green of Nottingham etc. etc. UK public will never be safe until they recognise that politicians are short changing the lot of them. Whilst they (politicians) enjoy multimillion pounds security at tax payers' expense - Bhatt
• I am sure whoever purchased the property for the hundred of thousands it cost will be really happy to find this situation when they moved in. Nice of a police chief to pass his problems onto someone else, and in the process have them spend a fortune as well - Aubrey
• It's all very well to complain about the state of affairs in our country day in day out, week in week out but we, & I include myself, have voted in this terrible Government and let them walk all over us without a protest, except for comments like this. I take it we still live in a country that we can write comments like this without fear of upsetting an authority? - Michael Lockier
• The yobs will breed more yobs and the situation will get even worse unless strong action is taken. The Human Rights Act is one of the big problems. Is anyone aware of one single case of this act having been needed by an ordinary law-abiding citizen? Its correct title should be the Criminals, Travellers, Terrorists, Illegal Immigrants and Lawyers Rights Act as they are the only ones benefiting from it. The Act should be scrapped but it will not happen under Labour and I do not expect the Conservatives would scrap it. So after a lifetime of voting Conservative I am left with no option but to vote BNP. From viewing their website they appear to be the only honest party willing to stand up for their beliefs and the rights of the law-abiding citizens - Ron
• Well you have to give it to the police at least they are impartial. They may do little or nothing for the public but they do precious little for each other. I suppose matters will worsen to the point when society will be forced to take up arms against the lawless, and then the blood will flow - John Holland
• Personally I'd be fascinated to know whether the person who bought his house is reading this - and if so whether Supt Mawson made due disclosure at the time of these factors influencing his sale of the house. Whether one could successfully sue this oath-breaking lame excuse for a policeman for concealment of environmental factors affecting his property I don't know, but it might make an interesting test case, especially following this public admission - Phil
• Didn't they have death squads in South America against this kind of activity? - Bill
• The police are up in arms about this too! Have a look at the coppers blog, for instance. Absolute nonsense - Andy Kelly
• Did this man not take an oath to uphold the law of this country "without fear or favour, malice or ill will" when he joined the Police? What a disgrace to the uniform. He should hold his head in shame and resign. Or be sacked for neglect of duty - John Langan
• Mr.Max Buckley has hit the nail squarely on the head but justice will never be dealt out vigorously until "Political correctness" is abolished and victims are awarded more rights than criminals - Iain
• What more damning indictment of our society could we have? What more complete admission of failure could we have? A Senior Police Officer who moved because he was afraid to go home after work!! A Government Minister who states that she is afraid to go out for a walk in her neighbourhood after dark!! What was the promise? Tough on crime? Tough on anti-social behaviour? Bring back corporal punishment and all this would end within a year. Ask the older generation of the people of the Isle of Man whether it worked, and served as an effective deterrent, or not - Bill
• State of the Nation Report: A Metropolitan Police "high-flyer" who earns "about £70,000 a year" a year said: "I gave in to them because it was either that or start challenging them." His responsibility as a private citizen is to challenge them. The job he gets paid to do is to ensure that private citizens are able to challenge them without fear of attack retribution &, in the case of attack, to ensure that the attacker is punished. "My quality of life has improved massively since then." What about the community he left behind? The Home Secretary said that she was too scared to walk in London alone after dark. If so, she better tell her colleagues to stop waging wars against civilians (mostly) & the odd terrorist, in Iraq & Afghanistan & put the troops on the streets. And, really, she would never would have done, at any point in her life!! "I just don't think it's a thing that people do. I wouldn't walk around at midnight. I'm fortunate that I don't have to do so." Get a life. Of course it's thing that people do. For a start, you have workers who have to walk because of the abysmal public transport services & because they cannot afford the extortionate cost of private transport in England. Then there are the others who like to walk in the streets. Her job is to make the streets safe - John Cleeve
• This is the same "brave" bunch of "boys in blue" who are going to try to lynch a shopkeeper for defending himself. We pay for heroes, we get police. And doesn't this just prove it? Seventy Thousand reasons from your poll tax why they are a complete waste of our money. They want you to have a go ... so they can have a go at you. Petulantly lashing out at ordinary people who are simply doing the job that we over-pay them for. And this one even admits to cowardice in the face of the same vermin we are supposed to have a go at. Peel had it right, the police constantly get it wrong. Why? Because they can - quinbus_flestrin
• It's nice that Mr Mawson had the resources to be able to move to a better area. Some of us have to put up with this crap day in day out, with a virtually invisible police presence, unless you happen to stray over the speed limit of course. It's a shame that more coppers and politicians don't suffer this sort of thing, which a lot of others put up with all the time. Maybe then they'd do something instead of handing out ASBOs and bleating out soundbites about how they're dealing with crime when all around them there is evidence to the contrary - Steve Lee, Kent
• If a highly paid Police Superintendent, presumably responsible for the organization, administration and management of tens or hundreds of police officers in Harringey, North London, has admitted that he was forced to move house by youths hanging around outside his home and he was unable to deal with them given his uniform and the backing of the police then what on earth can the ordinary citizen expect? Little wonder that feral youth now control the streets, they have no respect for the police let alone law and order and that the police have, apparently, abrogated all responsibility for ensuring the safety of people in our towns and cities. Clearly the rhetoric and spin in "tough on crime and tough on the causes of crime", has led to little or no real action - Ken
• Conscript these yobs into the army, give them six weeks' training and ship them out to Afghanistan. Then we will find out how brave they really are - mr.max buckley
• What hope for the rest of us if a superintendent in the police is "forced" from his home because of the feral youths we now breed in this country - Andy
• Zero tolerance is what is required. 12 and 13 yr olds are way out of control - I had first hand experience of it last weekend. So 17-20 yr olds have no fear. We are in no worse position than New York in the 80's - zero tolerance for all, stop pleasing the do- gooders and being scared of upsetting people. If we don't deal with it now, it will be totally out of control. We have stopped recruiting police officers unless they are female or ethnic in the Met - why? How stupid. Back to reality and normality - Jackie James
• So, why didn't Supt.Mawson just call the police as we would do? Because HE knew what WE all know, there are NO police on the beat and often NO replies from closed police offices. What a police service and what a government that runs it, both pathetic! - AlanofEngland
• So, what hope for the rest of us? This is the stark result of ten years' talk about "tough on crime" - Paul
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