LONDON - British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will unveil new measures on Monday to crack down on antisocial behaviour by focusing on policing in several areas of England and Wales, as he works to win over voters in the run-up to an election expected next year.
Sunak, who has seen a small tick up in his approval ratings since last month and received a boost when he curtailed a rebellion in his party over Brexit, is increasingly setting out his policy agenda to try to close a double-digit lead in the opinion polls for the opposition Labour Party.
He will say the new measures, including "hotspot" policing and a ban on nitrous oxide or laughing gas, underscores his zero-tolerance approach to anti-social behaviour which will see offenders receiving swift and visible punishments.
"Anti-social behaviour undermines the basic right of people to feel safe in the place they call home," Sunak said in a statement.
"The public have rightly had enough - which is why I am determined to restore people's confidence that those responsible will be quickly and visibly punished."
(Reporting by Elizabeth Piper; Editing by Hugh Lawson)