Boozing teen arrests rise

The number of under 18s being arrested for drunken bad behaviour has risen sharply, new figures have revealed.

More than 100 under-18s were arrested in Norfolk for being drunk and disorderly or drunk and incapable in 2007-08, a steep rise from just 19 the year before.

The youngest to be arrested was just 14 and the figures have today led to fresh fears over the teenage drinking problem.

Norfolk police attribute the rise to the harder line they are taking with under-age drinkers, saying communities are telling them they want this strand of anti-social behaviour to be targeted as a priority.

Chief Inspector Stuart Offord, of Norfolk Constabulary, said: "I don't think there has necessarily been more incidents.

"The difference now is that we, as an organisation, are focusing more on anti-social behaviour."

He said the new neighbourhood teams set up by the force were targeting their work on this category of offence, and dealing "firmly and robustly" with under-age drunks.

Whereas previously, drunk teens would have been taken home for their parents to deal with, they are now more likely to have a spell in the company of the police to help them sober up.

Chief Insp Offord added: "We have also got greater powers to deal with drink offences with young people, which have slowly come in over the past four or five years.

"Across all 52 neighbourhoods people have been telling us what problems they want tackled in their areas. The public have told us that they don't want to see young people drinking and causing alarm and offence."

In both 2003-04 and 2004-05, police arrested 30 under-age drinkers because of their bad behaviour. In 2005-06 it rose to 58, before falling to just 19 the year later.

The latest figures, for 2007-08, reveal that 102 children were arrested for drinking offences.

From 2003 until 2008, a total of seven 13-year-olds, 23 14-year-olds, 42 15-year-olds, 67 16-year-olds and 100 17-year-olds were arrested.

Norwich City councillor Antony Little, who is also the Conservative parliamentary candidate for Norwich South, called for more under-18s to be prosecuted for trying to buy alcohol.

He said: "The government's failure to enforce the law sends totally the wrong message about under-age drinking and is adding to public concern about yob behaviour and crime.

"We also need greater social responsibility, and an end to some parents turning a blind eye to their children's drinking."

Evening News 24