Last Friday I had the pleasure of attending a question and answer session with Home Secretary Alan Johnson, which was in Liverpool.
The session was well attended by a cross-section of the Merseyside community, including some children from a local primary school one of whom got to ask a question which was about Kensington Neighbourhood Wardens.
There was anger at the ‘Broken Britain’ rhetoric the Tories are constantly using that is talking down our communities. Such is the Tories desperation, they are even prepared to manipulate crime figures for their own political ends.
Of course reality tells a different story, for instance in Upton Ward according to figures published by Merseyside Police crime is down by 16% and violent crime is down by 24% both compared to the same period last year.
Of course we mustn’t take our eye off the ball and we also acknowledge that a single criminal act or instance of anti social behaviour is a 100% crime statistic for the victim. But the fall in crime proves that Neighbourhood Policing and other Labour policies are making our communities safer.