Police and local authorities are to be given new powers to temporarily close and seal the houses of the country’s worst nuisance neighbours, the Home Office has announced.
The powers, to be introduced in the forthcoming Criminal Justice Bill, are based on existing crack house closure measures.
For the first time local authorities, as well as the police, will be able to seek notice to close and seal a property and, once approved by the court, prevent anybody using it for up to 12 weeks. Intended only as a measure of last resort, it will apply to owner occupiers as well as social tenants.
Home Office minister, Vernon Coaker says: “The cost of responding to reports of anti-social behaviour is estimated at around £3.4bn a year, but this ignores the emotional and social impacts of anti-social behaviour…I want to ensure that police and local authorities have the powers to deal with it.”
Eighty-six per cent of respondents to the government consultation paper—Strengthening Powers to tackle Anti-social Behaviour—agreed it would be useful for current house closure measures to be beefed up to tackle significant and persistent
