Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has plans to expand Police powers to allow noise nuisance to be more effectively tackled.

The impact of noise is significant. It can result in children struggling to get a good night’s sleep and disrupt the hard work of businesses and public.

The police already have a number of powers to tackle anti-social behaviour through the Anti-social behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014. These powers are deliberately local in nature. It is for local authorities to work together to determine how best to respond to each individual case. Home Office statutory guidance supports them to do so.

The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, contains measures which will improve the police's ability to deal with unjustifiably noisy protests that may result in serious disruption to the activities of an organisation or in a significant detrimental impact on members of the public.

I am disappointed that the House of Lords did not back measures which are supported by the elected House and which would have helped to further reduce this disruption caused by a minority of protesters.