Crime and anti-social behaviour were at the forefront of issues that the former shadow Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, learned about during a visit to Reading yesterday (Tuesday).
The high-profile shadow minister in the previous government joined Reading West and mid-Berkshire candidate Olivia Bailey for a visit to the Dee Park estate in Tilehurst.
They learned about the issues affecting residents from a group of volunteers who have established a self-funded support group for youngsters in the area, before visiting the Dee Cafe community cafe.
Asked how crime ranks in terms of priorities for her party, she said: “For me, as shadow Home Secretary , it’s the issue that comes up everywhere I go.
“There are real concerns about crime and antisocial behaviour, and the lack of police and lack of community police, lack of neighborhood police to do anything about it.
“In Thames Valley you’ve lost around 20% of neighbourhood police over the last eight years.
“In practice, it can be worse than that, because often the neighbourhood police officers now actually spend half their time being pulled off to go and do other things.
“What Labour is committed to doing is to restore neighbourhood policing.”
Olivia added: “What comes up time and again when I’m talking to people on the doorstep is illegal bikes.
“They’re really terrifying people, being driven on pavements and nearly knocking people down.
“I’m so pleased that a Labour government is going to provide tough powers to sort it out, and get police back on the beat to sort it out.”
Ms Cooper also praised the work done in Reading following the “awful attack” on Olly Stephens by families, local councils, police, local services and community organisations working together.
“We want that kind of prevention partnership happening everywhere across the country,” she said.
Asked for a single word to describe her current emotion ahead of July 4, she said: “That’s a good question.
“I think it’s ‘hope’ because I sense we have a real opportunity for change.
“There has been so much despair and so much frustration about the chaos in the last 14 years, and particularly in recent years, when things have just felt like everything’s broken, what I’d like to see as a country coming together with optimism for the future.”
Olivia added: “I think I’d say hope too, and I’d add determination.
“We are doing everything we can to talk to every voter here.
“There is hope for a change, and everybody is saying to us that we want a change, but that hope is only going to come if people vote for it.”
