ARRESTING beggars in York does not work and is done to "appease" certain sections of the community, the city's top policeman has admitted.
York and Selby area commander, Chief Superintendent John Lacy, said arresting people for begging put them into a "revolving door" process, meaning they were back on the streets soon after being arrested.
He said: "The difficulty as a senior policeman is I am between the firing squad, between two sets of people.
"The business and tourist communities, City of York Council - they say they want to keep the city pretty, they don't want beggars or drugs on the streets.
"Then we have the caring agencies in the city, of which there are a lot. It is really difficult, but arresting people does not work."
Mr Lacy pointed to the successful arrest referral scheme as positive action being taken to address the link between addiction and crime.
The scheme offers people arrested for their first drugs offence the chance to have treatment, instead of being prosecuted. "We piloted that scheme, but when we moved to it there was shock and horror," said Mr Lacy.
He also stressed the need for enforcement in some cases, claiming some people travelled into the city and posed as beggars to make money.
He was speaking at a special screening of young filmmaker Kevin Curran's film, Stranded On Cloud 9, screened yesterday as part of the Without Walls Festival Of Ideas.
The film, based around the lives of three heroin addicts in York, was shown to a packed Priory Street Centre before a question-and-answer session.
George Wood, York Hospital's deputy chief executive, said users needed to be put on arrest referral quickly "otherwise the whole cycle returns".
But Alan Wright, of Carecent, asked: "Is it necessary for someone to be arrested before they are referred? People have to wait such a long time before any treatment they are almost being told 'keep offending until we can deal with you'." Mr Curran called on the Government to set up fully-funded and equipped centres for drug misusers and street drinkers, enough to cater for all those in York who needed them.
"But they won't do it, not in pretty little York. We have to start telling the truth, that is what the film is about."
- Without Walls is a group set up to form a vision of York for the next 20 years. The Festival of Ideas runs until August. For more details go to www.yorkwow.org.uk
Updated: 10:27 Tuesday, June 17, 2003
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