'Enough is enough' crime message

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Assembly members have unanimously backed a motion calling for a zero tolerance policy towards crime.

The DUP motion also condemned the murder of west Belfast man Harry Holland and an attack on an 87-year-old woman in Dromore, County Down.

Jeffrey Donaldson said they wanted to send a message to the family of Mr Holland and other victims of crime that enough is enough.

He said a "tiny minority" of young people feel they are "above the law".

Putting forward the motion, Mr Donaldson said: "We do not believe there is an acceptable level of crime on our streets and we do not believe that we should tolerate in any way the kind of crimes we are seeing."

Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams, in whose constituency the murder occurred, said there needed to be a joined-up approach between the community, the police and criminal justice agencies to get criminals and thugs off the streets.

We should not call upon others to do something that we as an Assembly would not be prepared to do ourselves if we have the power and responsibility Stephen FarryAlliance Party He said many of his constituents felt angry that murders like Harry Holland's were used to tarnish everyone in the area, especially young people.

"It is also a fact that there is a heightened fear among some sections of our people - particularly our elderly and people living alone - because of a popular view that criminals can get away with anything.

"This is not only a west Belfast or a republican view. I agree with the member for Lagan Valley that the delivery of good policing is a concern for people everywhere."

Assembly members rejected an amendment from the Alliance Party's Stephen Farry urging devolved ministers to also guarantee the PSNI an adequate budget in the event of policing and justice powers being transferred from Westminster.

Assembly members discussed the meaning of zero toleranceThe North Down Assembly said it was not appropriate to base the motion around the murder of Mr Holland, no matter how tragic the incident.

He added: "We should not call upon others to do something that we as an Assembly would not be prepared to do ourselves if we have the power and responsibility."

Ulster Unionist deputy leader Danny Kennedy argued Alliance's focus on the devolution of policing and justice was a "red herring".

"Let me be clear on behalf of the Ulster Unionist Party in relation to this, we do not believe sufficient confidence exists to allow the devolution of policing and justice at the present time or for the foreseeable future."

'Broken window theory'

The SDLP's Alex Attwood said his party had some concern about the debate around zero tolerance.

"Yes, we need tougher sentences. Yes, we need tougher courts. But sometimes toughness is not the only answer to deal with those who are already vulnerable within our community," he said.

Responding on behalf of the Stormont Executive, Sinn Fein junior minister Gerry Kelly agreed with Mr Donaldson that the Assembly had to sent out the message anti-social behaviour is unacceptable.

He said he welcomed Stephen Farry's contribution to the debate, and said there are many interpretations of what zero tolerance means.

"When he described it as a broken window theory - that if you deal with a small issue you can prevent other issues from occurring - I think that is a very important interpretation of zero tolerance which is sometimes used out of context."