BEFORE entering politics, Home Affairs Minister Ian Le Marquand served as the Island’s Magistrate.

In that role he was all too familiar with all manner of crimes committed by all manner of people. That dubious privilege makes him ideally placed to comment not only on breaches of the law, but also on the steps that the forces of law and order can take to counter criminality.

As Magistrate and now as a politician, Senator Le Marquand has highlighted what amounts to a major gap in the
Island’s statute book – the absence of legislation that can be employed to tackle the problem of young hooligans. As he points out, our courts have at their
disposal no enforceable sentences for those under the age of 15.

This in itself is bad enough, but the situation is made worse because many young teenagers who break the law know full well that, in legal terms, they are untouchables. If they offend, they can be caught by the police, but very little of real significance can happen to them after that.

In his former position on the bench, Senator Le Marquand could make his views on the shortcomings of the law very clear indeed. Now, however, he is in a
position to initiate action and, to his credit, this is exactly what he intends to do.

The Senator’s promised efforts to plug a legislative gap clearly merit the unstinting support of his fellow States Members. In addition, Islanders in general should welcome the proposed action, which, if recent events are taken into
account, cannot bear fruit too soon.

The recent brutal assault on French students by a gang of teenage girls serves to highlight the nature of the problem, but that was one incident among far too many. The notion that our streets are being made generally unsafe by feral thugs might be an exaggeration, but it is nevertheless true that public disorder – often involving the young and often
fuelled by drink – is an issue that must be urgently addressed.

This is, of course, of importance to all Island residents, but it is also of more general significance. The Island’s reputation as a peaceful, low-crime community is of obvious relevance to our tourist industry. Safety and security must also be factors which businesses in the finance sector take into account when they look to trade in a new jurisdiction.