To ask the Minister of Justice whether she has any plans to review existing provisions to address anti-social behaviour.

Mrs Long (The Minister of Justice)

With your permission, Mr Speaker, I will answer questions 1 and 3 together. A number of strands of work are being taken forward on a collaborative basis across Departments to address antisocial behaviour (ASB) and its impact on individuals and communities. At an operational level, policing and community safety partnerships (PCSPs), which are funded by my Department, work in partnership with designated partners, statutory bodies and the voluntary and community sector to develop solutions to address community safety issues and antisocial behaviour. New action plans and project initiatives for 2022-23 are being finalised. The Department continues to work strategically with relevant partners to address ASB, including through forums such as the strategic partnership group and the inter-agency group, which works to implement community safety initiatives in the lower Ormeau and university area. My Department has also established the Community Safety Board, a multi-agency strategic partnership forum set up to link the strategic and operational response to community safety issues, including ASB. During 2021, the Community Safety Board stood up a number of community safety response groups to facilitate a coordinated and targeted multi-agency response to local community safety concerns, including antisocial behaviour. Complementing the ongoing collaborative work across Departments to address ASB, my Department is leading on a multi-agency review of ASB legislation via the ASB legislation review delivery group. The objective of the review is to ensure that the relevant authorities across housing, justice and local council have effective and proportionate enforcement powers in place to deal with ASB. The delivery group is considering nine legislative powers, four of which were added to the review following public consultation and engagement. Work to date has involved detailed assessment of new legislative measures applied in other jurisdictions in response to ASB and their success and careful consideration of whether equivalent powers are required in Northern Ireland and the potential implications. To date, considerations have been completed on four powers: absolute grounds for possession; civil injunctions; provisions for noise nuisance; and criminal behaviour orders. The group will finalise its consideration of a fifth power in the coming weeks, and the remaining powers are being actively considered. Where legislative change is proposed, each departmental lead will be responsible for taking forward any subsequent legislative process within the time frame set by their Department's legislative work programme.

Mr Speaker

We are well over time.

Mr Sheehan

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire as ucht a freagra. I thank the Minister for her answer. For some communities and individuals, antisocial behaviour is more than an inconvenience; it is a living nightmare. The Minister is well aware of documented cases where people have taken their own life. Does she agree that work needs to be expedited to tackle the problem and to divert young people from the behaviour, which is so distressing?

Mrs Long

Youth diversion is something that, for example, the Youth Justice Agency with its early intervention programmes and the Department of Education's youth service try to engage in. The Member will be conscious that, in order for us to do that well and to address issues coherently, we need the legislative tools to ensure that, for example, we have the powers of seizure for on-street drinking that we need — we know that there were flaws in previous attempts to achieve that — and that we can work closely with communities to ensure that their priorities are taken into account. Contacting the PCSPs at this time, as they finalise their programmes, is an important part of ensuring that that diversionary work continues.

Mrs Long

On legislative opportunities, I have set out the nine legislative powers that are being dealt with. Those were added to during the consultation phase, so Members have had an opportunity to highlight areas where, they feel, there is an issue. Antisocial behaviour can, in some cases, amount to harassment. It may be worth the Member discussing with the local police whether harassment laws can be used where a person is being targeted by antisocial behaviour and whether, through those, there are opportunities to pursue prosecutions in a more structured way. We are looking at criminal behaviour orders and noise nuisance as part of the work that we are doing on antisocial behaviour, but other legal measures may be available. If the Member would like to discuss that with my officials and seek guidance, we would be happy to assist.

Ms Bradshaw

The Minister will be aware that, every year, there are issues in the Holylands area of South Belfast. Residents there are already becoming nervous about what is to come this year. Will you offer them reassurance that work is under way to put in place a multidisciplinary cross-departmental approach to address that?

Mrs Long

The recent scenes of disorder and criminality in the Holylands and wider area were completely unacceptable. That has been recognised by everyone who is involved in trying to overcome those issues. Some issues are a matter of antisocial behaviour, but others have a structural basis. That is why we are working with the strategic partnership group to address the underlying causes in the area. For example, the overpopulation of HMOs has created issues, and the seizure of alcohol has proved to be difficult. We hope, in the near future, to appoint an intervention manager for the Holylands — joint departmental funding has been associated with that — to work closely with the local community in a cross-community, cross-departmental and inclusive way to develop plans for the area. Actions at a strategic level, through policy development and implementation, will bring the most lasting resolution. However, that is not to say that we are standing back on the plans that are being made for the immediate future. Our operational partners are heavily engaged in work to ensure that we can get through St Patrick's Day and that people can enjoy it rather than dread it and have to suffer through it like it is a nightmare.

Mr Robinson

Could policing be looked at in the Causeway Coast and Glens area, where there is a shortage of officers on the ground to tackle antisocial activity, particularly in Limavady town in the evenings? We have had windows broken, street lights damaged and homes attacked. The situation is getting out of control.

Mrs Long

I thank the Member for his concern. I understand from his comments and those of Ms Sugden that there are serious issues in that locality. I cannot make commitments on behalf of the PSNI; operationally, it is independent of my office. However, I would be more than happy to meet representatives from the area, if it would be helpful, to look at what additional powers or opportunities there might be to bring to justice those involved in that kind of activity. It is not a minor issue. It is not just on the occasions when people suffer from antisocial behaviour that they are stressed and anxious; it is also on the nights in between when they fear that it will start again. It destroys people's lives; it destroys their quality of life; and it affects their mental health. It can also cost them a lot of money in damage to their property, particularly when that damage is low-level but persistent. I have huge sympathy for the residents who have to live with the consequences of the behaviour of others, and I am more than happy to engage as far as I can with Members to see whether there is any more that can be done. I also encourage the Member to speak to the local PCSP to see whether it is possible to target resources at those specific areas.