Whilst cautiously welcoming the Mayor of London’s proposal to tackle youth offending, Jenny Jones has called for tough, productive community service sentences before any imprisonment of young Londoners.
This morning the Mayor announced that he is working with Government on a scheme to send young first time offenders to a dedicated jail away from the main prison population.
"It’s not a bad idea as far as it goes, keeping young people away from hardened criminals. But for first time offenders, a period of really tough community service would be much better way of teaching young people how to be part of society.
"Effective community service schemes would not only improve community safety for all Londoners, they are also likely to be much cheaper for the tax payer. The Mayor should work with ministers to deliver such a scheme as quickly as possible."