GOVERNMENT calls for property landlords to make greater use of measures against anti-social behaviour have been criticised by a senior councillor.

Gateshead councillor Peter Mole, who heads the national campaign for a licensing scheme for private landlords, said that while Anti Social Behaviour Orders (Asbos) are useful for some landlords, they do not solve the problem of troublesome tenants.

He said: "Anti Social Behaviour Orders are a useful new tool for local authorities, but they are not the solution.

"They can be effective, and our own experience of them in Gateshead has been fairly positive, but their fundamental flaw has always been that they rely heavily on neighbour testifying against neighbour, and many have been reluctant to do so.

"We wait to see what changes the Government proposes to make to Asbos to make them easier for local councils to obtain."

Coun Mole said as well as falling short of local councils' needs, orders were not working properly in the private sector.

He said: "Ask virtually any local authority in the country and they will tell you that the vast number of complaints about anti-social behaviour are made about tenants in privately-rented housing.

"In many cases, private landlords do not care about their tenants' behaviour so long as there is a housing benefit cheque to cash.

"What we need is a proper licensing scheme for private landlords, so we could force them to adopt vetting procedures, agree minimum standards of management and take their responsibilities more seriously - or risk losing their licence and their livelihood."