Anti-social behaviour orders banning a woman from wearing a bikini in the garden and restricting a family with an autistic child from closing the door too loudly are two controversial examples of a regime that has gone unchecked, legal thinktank Justice has said in a report this week.

Examining behavioural control orders, Justice said the past two decades have seen a rapid proliferation of civil behavioural control orders on the statute books - however, they have never been the subject of a government-led review.

‘It is not clear how the effectiveness of orders should be measured, nor what “success” should look like. Very little attention has been paid to whether the behavioural control order “model” works,’ the report says.

Concerns include a low bar for conduct. ‘For example, some orders have been imposed on individuals as a result of them “closing the door too loudly" and impose conditions which prohibit “sitting on a pavement” or “wearing a bikini in the garden”. Arguably, such prohibitions are reflective of a loss of perspective on what degree of behaviour should properly be controlled by the state, and thereafter criminalised,’ the report says.

Recommendations include an urgent review on the function, efficacy and impact of existing behavioural control orders and better data on their use.

Justice chief executive Fiona Rutherford said: ‘Despite being introduced over two decades ago as a unique tool, the explosion in the use of behavioural control orders has gone unchecked. Systemic issues, from ambiguous legislation to the lack of training, funding and monitoring, means that these orders are vulnerable to disproportionate and inconsistent application. We urge policy-makers to address these issues now, and ensure that orders are applied effectively - protecting those they are designed to protect, without generating further harm.’

A Home Office spokesperson said: 'The prime minister’s Anti-Social Behaviour Action Plan is ensuring we are clamping down on this nuisance crime, establishing a zero-tolerance approach to all forms of anti-social behaviour, and giving the police and local authorities the tools they need to tackle the problem. Cracking down on anti-social behaviour works in tandem with this government’s priorities to prevent more murders, drive down violent crime, including against women and girls, and burglaries.'

 

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