Harbourside yob attack prompts action

MP calls for tougher sentences

The case of a Royal Navy sailor who was attacked by teenage yobs in Torquay after he tried to stop them stamping a seagull to death has been raised in the House of Commons.

Torbay MP Kevin Foster cited the case during a debate on unduly lenient sentences handed down by British courts.

He said the community sentences and small fines given in the assault case in July did not reflect the seriousness of the incident. 

But his call for action received a lukewarm response.

The attack on the harbourside took place when the sailor and his girlfriend tried to stop an 18-year-old from stamping on the gull. Four youths attacked the man and left him with cuts, bruises and a broken finger.

Four teenagers from Paignton, Torquay and Dartmouth admitted assault causing actual bodily harm. They were each given one-year community orders including a requirement to do unpaid work, and ordered to pay £150 compensation to the victim each.

Judge James Townsend said it had been an appalling incident of sustained violence, and they were lucky not to be facing more serious charges.

During the debate in the Commons Mr Foster said: “As the solicitor general will be aware, a serving Royal Navy sailor was the subject of a violent attack in Torquay when he attempted to stop a group of yobs stamping a bird to death, but the unduly lenient community sentences and small fines handed down did not reflect the gravity of the offence or provide any deterrent.

“What steps will the government take to review the unduly lenient sentence scheme to cover cases such as that?”

Solicitor general Michael Tomlinson replied: “I know (Mr Foster) has had a long-standing interest in this subject since even before he was a member of the House, and I am grateful to him for holding the government to account.

“He knows that the unduly lenient sentence scheme is reserved for the most serious matters. It is right to say that we keep the scheme under review.

“I cannot promise or guarantee any imminent changes to it, but I am very grateful to him for raising that important case.