Call to scrap unruly order

Government plans to deal with bad neighbours could breach the European Convention on Human Rights, according to academic lawyers who say the "blunderbuss" scheme should be scrapped.

They say proposals for anti-social behaviour orders (ASBO's) under the Crime and Disorder Bill could be the most "insidious attack on civil liberties this century". The orders give powers for local authorities and the police to take out civil law orders against anti-social behaviour, whose breach could result in up to five years in jail.

Ministers want to clamp down on the behaviour of disruptive neighbours. But in an article for Criminal Justice, leading academics say the proposals pose a serious risk to human rights.