IT is estimated that about a quarter of a million people a year are targeted by bogus callers.

These criminals prey on the most vulnerable members of our communities to either steal property or dupe them out of money.

Sadly, there has been little to deter these criminals. Instead the focus of combating doorstep crime has been to raise awareness among the general public.

However, such awareness campaigns often have a negligible impact on the very people targeted by the criminals.

The thrust of The Northern Echo's Doorstoppers Campaign, therefore, has been to seek legislation making it difficult for such criminals to operate.

We welcome the promise from the Government to introduce new laws.

While we realise it is impossible to offer full protection, it is clear that the laws governing 'cold callers' need tightening.

We have no desire to prevent representatives and salespersons from going about their legitimate business.

But it should be possible to devise some sort of licensing system under which they operate.

Reputable companies and individuals should have nothing to fear from legislation which allows them to do business while at the same time offering greater security and peace-of-mind to householders.

Our campaign was always intended to crack down on criminal activity, not those people making an honest living.

Hollow gesture

IN principle we have no objection to the renaming of the Crown Prosecution Service.

However, we fail to see how dropping reference to the monarch will somehow instill greater public confidence in the criminal justice system.

What the public wants to see is a legal process which is swift, effective and just; one which is able to hand out appropriate punishments to criminals and offer protection to victims.

It is difficult to see how a new title will help towards the achievement of such goals.