Community Safety Wardens in Caerphilly County Borough have been given extra powers to fine people who are caught buying alcohol for youngsters.
The powers were recently granted by the Chief Constable of Gwent Police.
The new accreditation also means Community Safety Wardens will be able to seize fireworks from under 18s.
Chief Inspector Simon Jeffries, of Gwent Police, said: “By administering the community safety accreditation initiative, Gwent Police are continuing to work with partners to expand the policing family to provide speedy, quick and effective justice.
“The additional powers are very welcome at this time of the year and we look forward to working closely with the wardens in making local communities safer.”
I am surprised by this, confiscation of fireworks is one thing but somebody buying alcohol for underage drinkers should really be appearing in front of a magistrate. Not being issued with an on the spot fine.
I agree with Richard. fining people of age for purchasing alcohol for minors trivialises the issue. It will come as a surprise to no one that teenagers as young as 15 are holding parties where alcohol is present and people spend the night vomiting and 'getting with people' to use the words of my nephew as apparently, that is cool.
With recent articles about children ending up in A&E drunk, we should be discouraging alcohol and restricting alcohol around minors and on the spot fines is not the way to do it. Such people deserve to be hauled in front of a judge and read the riot act.
And I agree with both Richard and Dean.
There is already a problem of supervision of these people, it is also alarming to know that if someone is concerned about the activity of one of these people, who the Acting Chief Constable and Chief Inspector Simon Jeffries, appears to have considerable faith, there is no advertised public telephone number to ring, as one would in the event of a problem with other law enforcement agencies, if anyone considers they are being dealt with unfairly at anytime by one of these street wardens, or, indeed anyone witnesses one acting in a manner which may be considered `suspect`,or unacceptable, there is little or no redress, other than to make a complaint to the council via its complaints process, all very suspect, when you consider the people you would complain to would be the very people being complained against.
There is no real control of these people, senior Council Officers do not know where they are at any given time, and there is no paper trail to show where they have been and what they were doing, Yet, we are told Gwent Police, at the most senior level that these people will – expand the policing family to provide speedy, quick and effective justice.
DISGRACEFUL.