Scottish Socialist Party General Election 2005
SSP calls for radical action to tackle crime at the roots
As Labour turn the election focus to weapons misuse and crime, the Scottish Socialist Party today called for an end to the war on young people, and action to tackle the real causes of crime - poverty, alcohol abuse and hard drug addiction.
Scottish Socialist Party convenor Colin Fox MSP said: "Labour and the Tories both like to say that they're tough on crime. "Cheered on by the media, Labour have declared all-out war on young people - blaming the youth for the problems our communities face. "Scotland's prison population has hit record highs under Labour, yet people still live in fear of crime. "Labour's policies just aren't working. We need to tackle crime at the roots - poverty, alcohol abuse and hard drug addiction. "It costs far more to keep a single young person behind bars than it does to fund an apprenticeship or keep a community centre open. "Yet Labour Councils have presided over the closure of community facilities in some of Scotland's poorest areas - then turned around and blamed young people for having nothing to do. "The SSP would start by reversing this trend, giving young people more to do than hang about outside off licences and empty shops. "The SSP would put more police on the beat, with democratic community control of local policing."
