Polly has welcomed the announcement of increased police resources in Thanet this summer – but has vowed to push for further action following a well-attended public meeting in response to recent disorder in Broadstairs.
She called the meeting following a recent outbreak of violent disorder in Broadstairs, that had seen drunken brawling and property damage on the seafront and in the town centre.
The meeting was attended by more than 100 Broadstairs residents, who had the opportunity to raise concerns and ask questions of representatives from Kent Police, the British Transport Police, Southeastern Rail, and Thanet District Council – as well the MP for East Thanet herself.
At the meeting, residents voiced their frustration over a decline in visible policing and diminishing confidence in the police’s ability to respond effectively to major incidents. There were strong calls for more proactive, preventative measures to avoid a repeat of the recent disturbances.
In response, Polly Billington reaffirmed her support for new policies being rolled out by the Labour government to tackle crime and antisocial behaviour, including the introduction of named police officers in every ward to serve as direct, accountable contacts for residents.
She also confirmed that she had written to the Home Secretary after the disorder, urging her to expedite the hiring of Thanet’s share of the 13,000 new community police and PCSOs that are being recruited nationally.
Polly welcomed the announcement that Margate and Ramsgate were among 500 towns signed up to a Home Office programme to crackdown on crime in town centers over the summer, but said she was concerned Broadstairs had not been included. She committed in the meeting to writing to the Kent Police and Crime Commissioner to request flexibility for Thanet’s District Commander to allocate resources across Thanet’s three towns based on need.
Other key commitments secured at the meeting included:
- The British Transport Police pledged to station up to four additional officers in Thanet.
- Southeastern Trains said they had switched from weekly to daily incident preparedness meetings, and were reviewing whether to introduce an alcohol ban on trains.
- Kent Police said they had increased patrols on Broadstairs Beach and in the town centre to increase police visibility. They also said they were reviewing how 999 calls were responded to on the night of the recent disorder, to see whether there were lessons to be learned.
- Kent Police also said they were consulting on whether to introduce a new Town Centre Dispersal Order in Broadstairs, in addition to the beach dispersal order already currently in place.
- Thanet District Council said they would work towards increasing coordination and communication between public safety agencies to improve incident prevention and response.
Following the meeting, Polly said:
The recent disorder in Broadstairs was completely unacceptable. As the local MP, I felt it was crucial to bring people together so residents could have their say and demand stronger action from the authorities.
Broadstairs residents certainly didn’t give our panel an easy ride. However, I am pleased they have secured commitments on transport and policing, particularly the stationing of more British Transport Police officers in Thanet and the announcement of increased visibility by Kent Police in Broadstairs.
Now those commitments have been made, the next step is ensuring they lead to noticeable improvements in the way our town is policed. It’s important we work together to get this right, so everyone can be confident that a fantastic day out on Broadstairs beach will not be marred by outbreaks of serious violence and disorder.
Broadstairs resident Jean Simmons, who attended the meeting, said:
I worry about what happened recently in Broadstairs, and I know people feel that you just don’t see police officers on the street or crime and antisocial behaviour being dealt with properly anymore.
I really liked that Polly is taking this issue seriously and is pushing the police and Southeastern rail for action, so I hope we will start to see a change in Broadstairs this year and a more proactive and visible police presence on the beach and in our town centre.