Aggressive begging a daily issue, councillor says

Tourists in Skegness are being verbally abused by beggars "on a daily basis", a local councillor has claimed.

East Lindsey District Council is being asked to clamp down on so-called "aggressive begging".

Danny Brookes, a cafe owner and Reform UK county councillor for Ingoldmells Rural, said there had been a "massive increase" in the number of people who approached others for money and then "shout and swear" if refused.

Councillor Craig Leyland, the Conservative leader of the council, said the authority "intends to deal with it" and would "work with the police".

Each year, the population of Skegness swells from 20,000 to about 250,000 due to tourists visiting the coast.

Brookes, who owns Indulgence Cafe in the town centre, said rough sleeping and begging increased during the summer season.

"There's more and more this year, outside the banks, the pubs, outside shop doorways and the shelters," he said.

"We get people sat at our tables and these beggars are coming over to them asking them for money and when they politely say no they get a load of verbal abuse and that's not good in front of the children or the tourists."

Brookes said he recently attended a meeting with about 40 other local businesses and "this was the number one issue to come up".

Brookes said he had asked the council to include "aggressive begging" in its existing public space protection order, which was introduced initially to ban dog fouling before being extended to target ad-hoc street trading. Those failing to comply can be fined £100.

Leyland said "aggressive begging goes in waves" and they are "constantly monitoring the situation".

He said the council was intending to extend the order to include begging and was examining the evidence for the change.

But he said the order would "only apply to land belonging to East Lindsey" and that "begging on private land is a policing issue".

"The police have more powers than we do, powers to move people on and powers of arrest," he said.

Insp Jacqueline Evans, from the Skegness Neighbourhood Policing Team, said the force had been made aware of the issue and would "take action" in response to "behaviour that crosses the threshold into criminality, such as public order offences, threats, intimidation or abusive behaviour".

"It is important to recognise that begging itself is a complex issue and is not always a straightforward policing matter," she said.

"We are committed to working with partner agencies to ensure that enforcement, support and safeguarding measures are considered where appropriate."

Jasmine Basran, from homelessness charity Crisis, said: "I do understand the upset, particularly if someone has experienced abuse or harassment. That is unacceptable."

She said legislation was already in place for police to deal with antisocial behaviour, but in terms of people begging, research showed the overwhelming majority were begging out of need, particularly for food.

"It is a situation where people are in the worst circumstances and need that help," she added.

She advised anyone who was approached and wanted to help could do so in a number of ways.

"If you are not comfortable giving people money because you are not sure how they will spend it, you can ask them, 'can I buy you a drink?' In this hot weather a cup of water is often greatly received, 'can I get you some food?' You can also donate to charities who support people."

In December last year, self-contained "sleeping pods" were installed in Skegness to help people sleeping rough.

Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North.

Download the BBC News app from the App Store for iPhone and iPad or Google Play for Android devices