ASBO rooftop protest brings town to a halt

Aug 10 2007 Liverpool Daily Post

A MERSEYSIDE MP is demanding a rethink on anti-social behaviour measures after a notorious member of an “ASBO family” staged a rooftop sit-in that brought a town to a halt.

Southport MP John Pugh warned that ASBOs are failing to control anti-social behaviour in many areas as they approach 10 years in existence.

The call came after James Gelling, eldest of the Gelling brothers who have plagued Southport despite being subjected to blanket ASBOs, climbed on to a rooftop and stood precariously on the edge.

Dr Pugh said: “There is a percentage of people in an extreme category who now look at ASBOs and wear them as a badge of honour.

“We need an altogether new, more robust series of measures to clamp down on thugs and louts who are a menace on the streets.

“ASBOs don’t work with people who don’t care about receiving them.”

The three “Gelling brothers” have been terrorising Southport for five years despite receiving ASBOs.

Police yesterday were forced to cordon off part of Southport’s town centre as James Gelling was spotted on a rooftop in Market Street.

The town centre came to a standstill as Gelling balanced along the edge of a dormer window 60ft above the road, making lewd signs to any passers-by.

Gelling, 20, scorned police efforts as they tried to persuade him to climb down.

After two hours of taunting police and residents, at 4pm Gelling was escorted down and taken to the police station for questioning.

Liberal Democrat Dr Pugh said the incident was a perfect example of how ASBOs fail to control hardened louts.

He added: “These boys just don’t care what people think of them and they certainly don’t care if they are given an ASBO.

“It is no longer a way to reform anti-socials. They are simply no longer fazed by the threat of an ASBO.

“We need to find a more efficient series of measures to remedy the behaviour of boys like this.”

A spokesman for Merseyside Police said: “A 20-year-old man had been arrested following the incident and was detained for questioning at Southport Police Station.”