The trouble with Labour’s ‘respect orders’

As the Allison Pearson debacle begins to settle down, the lesson being drawn by many is that the police have no business harassing people for voicing opinions that are legal, no matter how offensive or hypothetically damaging they might be. Many of us have been urging as much for years. But taking stock now, surely most can agree that it’s not the state’s role to monitor speech, morality or the way we conduct ourselves in our private lives.

If this is indeed a growing consensus, then the Labour government seems to be veering in the opposition direction. On Friday it announced a new measure to tackle antisocial behaviour, ‘respect orders’. Essentially Asbos for grown-ups, these will give police and councils the power to impose restrictions and punishments on hooligans, drug users, street drinkers, nuisance neighbours and the like. The police will be able to ban offenders from urban centres and parks, with perpetrators compelled to attend anger management courses or rehabilitation treatment for drug or alcohol problems.