IT is telling that, on the day the Government launched its five-year campaign to cut crime, news emerged of the fatal shooting of a pensioner in a North-East pub, an investigation was launched into the murders of four people in North Yorkshire, and a murder trial began following the death of a paedophile.

Crime and anti-social behaviour, according to recent polls undertaken by the Labour Party, make up the number one issue on the doorsteps of Britain.

After the distractions of the aftermath of the war against Iraq, key figures within Government have talked for some time of the need for the Blair administration to be seen to be addressing the concerns which really matter to people.

It is therefore no surprise to see a raft of new anti-crime measures being announced by the Prime Minister himself, with the Home Secretary by his side.

Make no mistake about it, this is the General Election campaign under way in earnest, with Mr Blair hitting back from the damage caused by the war with a populist approach to cleaning up the streets.

Why, it could almost be coming from Mr Zero Tolerance himself, the elected Mayor of Middlesbrough, Ray Mallon.

Tougher action against offenders, thousands more policemen released from paperwork to work on the frontline, and crime-plagued communities having the power to trigger snap inspections of their local police force... the attractions are impossible to deny.

We welcome the Government's campaign and look forward to its effective delivery making a real difference.

But it is a long time since Mr Blair promised as Prime Minister-in-waiting to be tough on crime and the causes of crime.

Seven years after he swept to power, voters may wonder why it has taken so long to produce such an ambitious action plan.