French Leftist gets it right

The Socialist frontrunner to succeed French President Jacques Chirac, Segolene Royal, has broken ranks with her party by calling for a crackdown on youth crime - challenging the conservatives on their home turf. "We need a return to the heavy hand," Ms Royal said in a speech delivered in the north Paris suburbs, where an outbreak of street violence has raised fears of a repeat of last year's riots.

Unveiling a crime and security platform that is a break with the Socialists' normal emphasis on tolerance and funding for education, Ms Royal said the tough anti-crime policies of Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy - the top conservative contender in next year's election - had failed to prevent an explosion of violence in poor French suburbs.

But in a break with the Socialists, who brand Mr Sarkozy as a hardliner, the mother of four called for "a much firmer approach" to young offenders. "The Left has long underestimated" the crime problem, she said. "Now is the time to tackle it head-on." Military-style academies could be set up for young offenders aged 16 or over, she suggested, steering troubled youths into aid work or apprenticeships, and teaching them "how to behave ascitizens".

For younger offenders, parents would be enrolled in compulsory courses at the first sign of trouble, with social benefits scrapped for those who failed to bring their children into line. Troublemakers under 16 should be removed from school and put in special boarding schools under close supervision by teachers, sports workers and volunteers.

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