new powers

The police have acquired new powers to stop, search and confiscate alcohol from citizens they suspect are underage without having to prove they intended to consume it. This latest implementation of legislation enacted in the Thought Crimes Bill (2008) is part of the ongoing rollout of new laws that started in 1997.

Also included in the bill is the provision for officers to give "Just piss off and go home" notices to children as young as 10 who they think might cause trouble at some point in the near future. The previous lower limit for these notices was 16 years old.

Police officers can't wait to put their new powers into practice. "Removing the need to actually prove that a crime has been committed" said one officer "and allowing us to act on laws that we think citizens might be thinking of breaking will make our work considerably easier."