A CONTROVERSIAL new committee set up to focus on crime and disorder in Blaenau Gwent held its first meeting yesterday.

Last month, the Argus reported how the new executive position of crime and disorder and safe communities was being branded as a "jobs for the boys" exercise by Labour councillors when John Hopkins was appointed as portfolio member with Clive Meredith as chairman of the scrutiny committee.

This week saw the first scrutiny committee meeting, where Cllr Kevin Brown said the group cannot afford to be indecisive and must make residents' concerns about crime a priority.

“The bottom line is we must make a difference and go in hard and strong,” said Cllr Brown.

“We, as a council cannot afford to be wishy-washy,” he added.

Cllr Brown told the committee, chaired by Clive Meredith, that it must involve residents in all areas of the borough if it is to succeed.

“It is about understanding what is going on in our own communities and making people feel safe in their homes or walking at night,” he said.

The committee heard from community safety partnership analyst Paul Jones, who explained the work of the partnership in Blaenau Gwent and how it uses statistics to identify priorities.

Areas the committee will look at include anti social behaviour, domestic abuse, crimes and substance misuse.

Cllr David Rocke said the committee needs to go further and understand the concerns of each community, rather than relying on statistics.

“We have a deeper problem than just statistics,” said Cllr Rocke.

“We need to engage with the public in all wards as they each have different concerns,” he added.

Cllr John Hopkins warned the committee must move forward cautiously as it is a new area for the council.

Speaking after the meeting, Cllr Hopkins said: “We are determined to tackle the major priorities such as crime, anti social behaviour by working with in partnership with the police to ensure people feel protected in the community.”