AT LONG last the police have the powers to sort out the teenage thugs who linger on our street corners.

I'm talking about the annoying drunks who plague the town centres of this great nation of ours.

Finally, if the police spot any one under the age of 18 drinking in a public place, they will have the power to pour any drink down the drain.

But, although this is good news, but, at the end of the day, does it go far enough?

The answer to that question, sadly, is no.

Youngsters today have no grasp of the worth of money , and the moment the police have left, they will be down at the nearest off-licence stocking up on new supplies.

What we need are powers bestowed on the police whereby these youngsters are arrested, prosecuted and punished. After all, they are breaking the law and should be reprimanded accordingly.

These young, drunken thugs are terrorising neighbourhoods with their graffiti, vandalism and general trouble making.

Pouring their drink away will just make the police a laughing stock.

We now need to prosecute more shopkeepers for selling booze to kids and a proper identification scheme for over 18s which goes further than the meritorious efforts of the Portman Group which provides bona fide identification for adults who have difficulty being served in puibs and clubs.

That way shopkeepers have no excuse for serving children and will stop serving kids when they see the fines they face.

Although these new police powers should be welcomed, perhaps Tony Blair should remember his pre-election promise: "Tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime."

Kids and alcohol equal crime, and we need to stamp it out once and for all so teenagers know under-age drinking is not acceptable.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.