The drug and crime culture portrayed in 'The Wire' is in British cities too

In a keynote speech on crime and broken communities today, Chris Grayling has highlighted the “decade of neglect” under Labour – a decade in which “violence in our society has become a norm and not an exception”.

“Since Labour came to power, the level of violent crime in Britain has risen dramatically, by 70 per cent. Gun crime is up by more than half and there are more than 100 serious knife crimes each day. Under Labour, fatal stabbings reached the highest level on record.”

These figures, he said, showed that the drug and crime culture of the award winning US series ‘The Wire’ is increasingly becoming a feature of British cities as well:

“The culture of violence that was a feature of US cities a generation ago is now a feature of British cities. The Wire used to be just a work of fiction for British viewers. But under this Government, in many parts of British cities, The Wire has become a part of real life in this country too”.

Figures show crime is hitting the poor hardest

New figures show that crime is now at its worst in Britain's poorest communities. All of the top twenty deprived areas in Britain are in the top 10% for crime, and within individual local authority areas the poorer parts are experiencing much worse crime than the prosperous parts.

The Conservatives have also uncovered data showing that the unemployed are twice as likely to experience violent crime and burglary as those in work.

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Grayling said that this research “completely undermines Labour’s claim to be the party of progressive politics”. Commenting on the increasing levels of violent crime and burglary, he added:

“The people who are at the sharp end of this are the people who face the biggest challenges in their lives in some of our most deprived communities. Billions of pounds, endless initiatives and a decade of rhetoric later, and the reality is that the Government has let those people down comprehensively."

Grayling says McKinnon extradition is "very disappointing"

Chris Grayling has described the news that Gary McKinnon has lost his appeal against extradition as “very disappointing”.

American authorities want to try the British citizen, who suffers from Asperger's Syndrome, for hacking into US military and Nasa computers in 2001/02.

Chris, the Shadow Home Secretary said, “People are right to be extremely concerned about our extradition arrangements.”

“This is a case where there is a clear argument for it to be tried in this country, and our system should take health issues into account before considering deportation. I hope lessons will be learned.”

David Cameron said he was "deeply saddened and disappointed" by the decision:

"Gary McKinnon is a vulnerable young man and I see no compassion in sending him thousands of miles away from his home and loved ones to face trial."

"If he has questions to answer, there is a clear argument to be made that he should answer them in a British court. This case raises serious questions about the workings of the Extradition Act, which should be reviewed.”

£200 million spent on ID card scheme already

Chris Grayling has attacked Labour after it was revealed that over £200 million has been spent on the ID card scheme already.

Information released in a Parliamentary Question shows that the Government has so far spent £215m on the scheme, which includes the delivery of biometric passports.

The Government also confirmed that it has signed eight contracts to deliver the scheme, with a combined value of over £1 billion.

Chris, the Shadow Home Secretary, said, “The Government has already wasted £200 million that we cannot afford. The scheme will cost hundreds of million pounds more, even if the cards are voluntary. It is time this scheme was completely scrapped.”

Burglary hotspots revealed

Analysis carried out by the Conservatives has identified the worst places in England and Wales for domestic burglary.

The latest annual crime statistics revealed the first increase in domestic burglary offences in six years.

And our analysis shows that Manchester has the highest rate of offences, followed by Nottingham and Reading.

Chris Grayling, the Shadow Home Secretary, warned, “This increase in burglaries is a big problem, and it's not just down to the recession. The jump in drug-taking announced last week is also a big factor - since a large proportion of burglaries result from people trying to get money to feed a drug addiction.”

He stressed, “We desperately need real action to get police away from filling in forms at their desk in police stations and out onto the beat tackling the problem.”

Grayling attacks Government over rise in drug abuse

Chris Grayling has described the statistics for drug use in the UK, released today by the Home Office, as “depressing”.

The Shadow Home Secretary was commenting on figures that show the use of Class A drugs is at its highest point since 1996.

Chris said: “Hardly a day goes by without yet another depressing set of statistics about the scale of Britain’s social problems under this Government.”

And he added: “Drug addiction causes family breakdown, is linked to a substantial proportion of crime and causes long term damage to people’s health. We have to turn this round.”

Grayling warns knife crime remains too high in Britain

Chris Grayling accused Labour of being “complacent about our law and order problems” after the annual crime statistics revealed that 104 serious offences with a knife are committed each day.

The Home Office figures show that in 2008/09 there were over 38,000 selected serious offences involving a knife, including murder, attempted murder and robbery.

The Government has changed the measure though - despite previous criticism of its use of knife crime statistics - making it more difficult to get a true picture of knife crime in Britain.

Chris, the Shadow Home Secretary, said, “It looks like the Government is trying to cover up the scale of the problem we face with knife crime - little wonder given its policies have failed to get to grips with the challenge.”

He stressed, “Massaging the figures on knife crime twice in two years is just an insult to the families of those who have been tragically murdered in knife attacks and who are campaigning for real action to get knives off our streets.”

Grayling warns not enough is being done to tackle anti-social behaviour

Chris Grayling has proposed giving police the power to confiscate troublemaker's mobile phones and other items in an effort to tackle anti-social behaviour head on.

The Shadow Home Secretary warned that Labour had failed to get grips with this deep-rooted problem, and stressed their strategy was "purely based on grabbing headlines".

He explained that dealing with anti-social behaviour isn't simply a law and order challenge; it goes right to the heart of the Conservative plan to fix our Broken Society:

"It's about trying to rebuild the family, about trying to recreate a sense of responsibility inside and outside the home, about trying to create pride in communities and not alienation from them. All of that will lie at the heart of what we seek to do in Government."

Chris made clear, though, that more needs to be done to tackle anti-social behaviour at the sharp end - and he set out a number of policy proposals to deter young troublemakers:

• Grounding orders, which would allow police and the authorities to ground troublemakers for up to a month (except to go to school)
• Simple community punishments, like picking up litter
• Giving police the power to temporarily confiscate mobile phones or other items, like bikes, for a fortnight or a month

Chris stressed, "If we're to deter potential troublemakers, the consequences they face have to be relevant to the lives they lead, and to be immediate. Otherwise why would they stop doing what they were doing?"

DNA database still growing by 40,000 a month

Information released by the Home Office has revealed that 40,000 people a month are being added to the DNA database - despite the European Court of Human Rights having ruled that the system of DNA retention in England and Wales is illegal.

Chris Grayling, the Shadow Home Secretary, accused the Government of “dragging their feet” on the matter.

He said, “The Government still doesn’t seem to get it about the DNA database. It is clearly illegal to maintain the records of innocent people but they are dragging their feet in dealing with the problem.”

A Conservative Government would adopt a system similar to that used in Scotland, where the DNA profiles of those not convicted of an offence would only be retained in circumstances where charges relating to a crime of violence or a sexual offence had been brought.

In these circumstances, DNA profiles could be retained for a maximum period of five years subject to judicial oversight.

Grayling says Labour have never been "more complacent"

Chris Grayling criticised Alan Johnson’s first speech as Home Secretary, despite the Labour Minister admitting that they have been ‘complacent’ as regards anti-social behaviour.

Chris, the Shadow Home Secretary, said “Alan Johnson says the Government has been ‘complacent’ in tackling anti-social behaviour. But in the next breath he contradicts himself by boasting that the Home Office has done so much to improve the quality people’s lives over the past 12 years.”

Chris added, “On the same day we found out that Britain has the highest violent crime rate in Europe, his comments show just how complacent and out of touch this Government really is.”

Grayling slams "absurd fudge" over ID cards

Chris Grayling warned that the Government’s decision not to make ID cards compulsory makes them even more of a “white elephant”.

Alan Johnson, Labour’s Home Secretary, announced today that the public will not be forced to carry an ID card.

Chris, the Shadow Home Secretary, stressed, "If this system is not going to be compulsory...what is the point of it?"

And he said the decision was “symbolic of a Government in chaos”:

"They have spent millions on the scheme so far. The Home Secretary (Alan Johnson) thinks it has been a waste and wants to scrap it, but the Prime Minister won't let him. So we end up with an absurd fudge instead. This is no way to run the country."

Chris added that spending millions on a scheme such as this “makes no sense at all”, stressing, “This is a project that nobody wants and the nation can’t afford."

A Conservative government will scrap the ID Card scheme

Chris Grayling has written to the five suppliers chosen to bid for contracts to deliver Identity Cards, warning them not to sign further contracts for the project because it will be scrapped immediately by an incoming Conservative Government.

The Shadow Home Secretary also warned them to beware of any efforts by the Government to write so-called “poisoned pill” provisions into contracts that might be designed to prevent the cancellation of the project.

Chris said: “We intend to scrap the ID Card project as one of our first acts if we are successful at the election.”

And he added: “I am increasingly concerned that the Government is putting in place contractual arrangements that are designed to tie the hands of a future Government, and I want to make the contractors absolutely aware that we do not intend to complete this work.”

We need a change of Government, not just a new Home Secretary

Chris Grayling has stressed that Jacqui Smith’s decision to stand down as Home Secretary will not solve the problems facing Britain.

Chris, the Shadow Home Secretary, warned that the Labour Government is showing "no direction at all" and said that Britain urgently needs a General Election.

"Crime and anti-social behaviour affect people up and down the country and make life a misery for many. Knife homicides are the highest on record, violent crime is nearly double the level of a decade ago and binge drinking blights our neighbourhoods.”

"After twelve years of failure and a society which is broken, what we need is a change of Government, not just a new Home Secretary.”

Chris added, "The Prime Minister is losing control of his own reshuffle and there seems to be no direction at all. We really now need a General Election."

Grayling welcomes victory for "basic decency" in Gurkha case

Chris Grayling hailed a “great victory for Joanna Lumley and her well-run campaign” after the Government finally announced they will allow Gurkhas to settle in the UK.

The Shadow Home Secretary applauded the actress for having “publicly embarrassed” Labour Ministers and “reminded us all of the role that the Gurkhas have played in helping defend this country over the centuries”.

And he stressed that the Gurkha case was first and foremost about “basic decency”:

“People from around the world have come to live in this country in the past decade. There was never a justification to deny that right to a group of people who have long lived in the nation’s affections, and who have risked, and often given their lives for its protection.”

Chris said that it was a shame that the Government had to be “dragged kicking and screaming through the Courts and then through the crowds of Gurkhas outside parliament before it finally did the right thing.”

Government plan to limit DNA database "doesn't go far enough"

Chris Grayling has attacked Labour for failing to take “real action” to remove innocent people from the DNA database.

The Shadow Home Secretary warned that Labour’s latest plan to trim the DNA database “doesn’t go far enough”, and accused the Government of “trying very hard to do as little as it can as slowly as it can”.

Under the current system, details of individuals who are cleared of crimes - or not even charged in the first place - are held for six years, or 12 in cases involving serious violent or sexual offences.

Chris stressed the importance of remembering that people are innocent until proven guilty and of achieving the "right balance" – and he said:

“I can see no reason to be storing the DNA of people who have not been convicted of any offence.”

Chris promised that a Conservative Government would implement the Scottish system, where a DNA sample is taken on arrest but then deleted if the person is cleared, or kept for a maximum of five years if they are cleared of serious sexual or violent offence.

Grayling warns we cannot afford the ID card scheme

Chris Grayling has stressed the nation “cannot afford” Labour's ID card scheme and promised that a Conservative Government would “scrap it as quickly as we can”.

The Shadow Home Secretary said he did not think ID cards were “necessary”, especially at a time when “the public finances are in a mess”

He condemned Jacqui Smith’s decision to launch a voluntary, single city scheme in Manchester, stressing:

“Piloting the scheme in one city is nonsensical and will only serve as a tax on the people of Manchester.”

Chris explained that databases for passports and driving licenses already exist, so spending billions on another scheme “just doesn’t seem to make any sense”.

And he promised that under a Conservative Government “the ID card scheme will go. I don’t think it is the right thing to do. We don’t think the nation cannot afford it and it won’t happen."

Grayling highlights Labour divisions over ID cards

The splits within the Labour Party over the future of their ID card scheme were revealed today.

David Blunkett, the former Home Secretary, called for the scheme to be scrapped and a senior Cabinet minister told a newspaper that it’s unlikely to go ahead.

Meanwhile, the Home Office continued to insist that the ID card scheme will go ahead.

Chris Grayling, the Shadow Home Secretary, accused Labour of being “all over the place” on the issue:

“They have been telling us for years that they are essential, but now it’s clear they are split down the middle over the issue.”

He called on Labour to “accept the inevitable” and scrap the ID scheme right away.

Grayling warns Government has "too many powers to snoop on innocent people"

Chris Grayling has welcomed Labour's decision to cancel the proposed single database holding information from e-mails, phone calls and internet use, but warned that the Government still has "too many powers to snoop on innocent people".

The Shadow Home Secretary said, ""It is good that the Home Secretary appears to have listened to Conservative warnings about big brother databases."

And he stressed, "Now that she has finally admitted that the public don't want their details held by the State in one place, perhaps she will look at other areas in which the Government is trying to do precisely that."

Chris attacked Labour for creating "a culture of surveillance which goes far beyond counter terrorism and serious crime" - and warned:

"Too many parts of Government have too many powers to snoop on innocent people and that's really got to change."

Grayling warns increase in serious crime paints "worrying picture"

Chris Grayling has warned the latest crime statistics for England and Wales paint a “worrying picture” of rising levels of serious crimes.

Figures from the Office for National Statistics and the Home Office show an increase in robberies involving knives, domestic burglaries, drug offences and a 25 per cent rise in theft from the person.

Chris, the Shadow Home Secretary, said the statistics were an “alarming step in the wrong direction” and stressed the rise in knife robberies “undermined” Labour’s claims to be getting to grips with knife crime.

The figures also highlight Labour's failure to tackle antisocial behaviour: problems with people being drunk or rowdy in public places has increased, and the remaining measures of antisocial behaviour are largely unchanged.

Chris said, “All of this underlines the need for the Government to stop wrapping up our police in unnecessary paperwork and get more officers back on to the streets.”

Grayling slams Home Office "chaos"

Chris Grayling has stressed the last few weeks have been "another chapter of chaos" in the Home Office.

The Shadow Home Secretary said the emergence of a terror threat from the student visa system was an "unsurprising" development, given that the Conservatives and the security services have been warning about flaws in the system for years.

He criticised Jacqui Smith's handling of the situation and said the Home Secretary had a number of questions to answer:

• Why has the Home Office's response to warnings from the security services been to cut back the visa operation in Pakistan?
• Why are student visa applications from Pakistan being handled from Abu Dhabi, not Pakistan?
• Is she aware that high quality fake documents that will help applicants get visas are on sale for £100 in Pakistan?
• Will she confirm the "extraordinary fact" that the British High Commission in Pakistan estimate that half of all students to whom they grant visas disappear after reaching the UK?
• Will she confirm that one of the suspects in this case was allowed into Britain even though he had suspect papers?

Chris said Mrs Smith had "key issues" to address in relation to national security, and stressed, "What we need is a new Government if we are to sort out all of this mess."

Read the Shadow Home Secretary's response in full.