I'm very pleased to say I missed out on the days of school corporal punishment and thankfully was never exposed to the cane or other similar infamous tools of torture.

The Victorian ethos that "children must be seen and not heard" never applied to me or my compatriots and I can hardly say I was ever ruled with a rod of iron.

Yes, we were naughty at times and got up to some serious mischief in our teenage years, but there were limitations and boundaries that would never be crossed.

This week I watched a television programme that actually sent shivers down my spine. Tuesday night's Channel Four documentary, Bad Behaviour, showed the daily trials and tribulations of Ben, a 13 year old boy with serious behavioural issues.

Ben had been absent from school for several months and was terrorising his mother and ten-year-old sister on a daily basis. Every other word was an expletive, doors were ripped off their hinges in rage and the physical violence he directed at his mother was of terrifying proportions.

The analysis and advice offered by the child psychologist, Warwick Dyer, highlighted the issue that inadvertently Ben's parents had created the problem themselves and in order for him to change his wicked ways, they too must change their method of parenting.

The results for Ben were positive and by the end of the programme you were left feeling quite optimistic.

However, what is apparent is that Ben is not a unique case and that throughout the country young people are successfully terrorising their own families, and neighbourhoods with their extreme anti-social behaviour.

This week also brought us the story of 19-year-old Kerry McLaughlin, branded the 'real life Vicky Pollard'. The Wallsend teenager was given a "super" anti-social behaviour order as a result of 111 complaints from neighbours over the past 18 months.

Tales of motorbike races in the street, naked teenagers tied to lampposts and late night visits from boot-leg booze vans led to an eviction notice as neighbours endured months of misery.

The behaviour was so extreme that an elderly neighbour had to move out of their home to live with a relative in order to gain some sleep and avoid the harassment.

I am by no means a kill joy and don't wish to sound like Victor Meldrew, but what gives these people the right to inflict pain on others and where is their sense of compassion and respect?

I don't think young people today are worse than ten or 15 years ago, but I do believe that some think they are above the law.

The problem is that often the authorities are too slow in reacting to the issue and terrorised neighbours are afraid of retaliating in the old fashioned way for fear of being locked up themselves.

Sadly, these fears were realised in the case of 77 year old Bill Clifford. Having endured months of torment by a gang of youths, he resorted to waving an air pistol to try to deter them. The youths reported him to the police and the day before Mr Clifford was due in court, the war hero hanged himself.

Taunts and torments from youngsters are no new thing, what is novel is the way they report any minor reprisal or frustrated act of retaliation to the police or a teacher.

In years gone by, if you did something wrong and were reprimanded by an elder, you held your hands up and faced the consequences.

Anti social behaviour orders are a welcome form of penalty and no doubt a Godsend to certain terrorised neighbourhoods, but we need to get to the root of the problem and recognise prevention is just as important as punishment.

The tabloid crusade against yobs and chav scum is not enough; the cause of these social problems needs to be identified.

Perhaps a new challenge for Labour's new term in office.

The fee for this column is donated to the York City FC Development Fund

Updated: 15:53 Friday, May 06, 2005