ANTI-SOCIAL behaviour has been identified by all the political parties as a key issue in the run-up to the General Election.

So it is no surprise that we are seeing moves designed to illustrate that yobbish behaviour will not be tolerated.

From midnight last night, police were given the powers to impose instant £80 fines on thugs misusing fireworks. It is a step which is long overdue because, in the wrong hands, fireworks can cause misery.

Meanwhile, the council in Darlington has vowed to carry out leaflet campaigns to hammer home the "get tough" message every time an anti-social behaviour order is placed in the town.

It follows a legal test in London when human rights group Liberty unsuccessfully claimed Brent Council and the Metropolitan Police acted unlawfully by publicising details of three youths placed under such orders.

The law now says that councils and police forces are free to plaster the names of persistent offenders around communities plagued by their activities.

And Darlington Borough Council leader John Williams has made it clear that the authority intends to make full use of that power.

It is, of course, no coincidence that Darlington is the constituency of Alan Milburn, who has recently been put in charge of the Government's election strategy, and who has made tackling anti-social behaviour a top priority.

We support the general principle of naming and shaming in extreme cases. There is no point banning someone from an estate without telling local people that such action has been taken.

But there are dangers that in the race for votes, politicians could become gung ho in wanting to be seen to be getting tough on yobs.

It would be wrong for the new powers to be overused. Extreme action must be reserved for extreme cases.