99 Years.

Mr Smith thinks that people have a right to be protected from racially aggravated anti-social behaviour and physical assaults, but is there really any point in hitting a 49-year old alcoholic with an ASBO that last 99 years? And then we wonder why the police and legal authorities are bringing the law and its operation into such disrepute?

"A HOMELESS man in Glasgow has been hit with a 99-year super-Asbo in a bid to tackle racist repeat offenders. In the longest Asbo ever imposed, Michael Gilligan was served with the criminal antisocial behaviour order after a series of racially aggravated assaults against security staff at a Gorbals supermarket."

You've Been ASBO-ed.

"Each junior AntiSocial Behaviour Order (Asbo) has cost £500,000 since their introduction four years ago, the Scottish Government has revealed. Community safety minister Fergus Ewing disclosed the cost as he unveiled a new framework to combat youth offending which will place more emphasis on early intervention and prevention."

It seems to Mr Smith there isn't a lot of point in legislating for something which costs so much to administer and which clearly is not favoured as a tool by those who have the choice of using it. Mr Smith thinks we could have made better use of the £7 million so badly spent.

Especially when judges are complaining about youths who have been found guilty of committing crimes have to be released because there isn't the resource available to keep them locked up for public protection.