Yobs attack councillors

By John Hill on September 27, 2007 12:00 AM

A PAIR of Docklands councillors were attacked by a gang of yobs as they walked through their own ward.
Phil Briscoe and Shirley Houghton, both Conservative members of Tower Hamlets Council, were set upon as they made their way through the Barkantine Estate in the Isle of Dogs on Tuesday evening (September 25).
One of the three teenage attackers even taunted the married couple by claiming he had "10 ASBOs and I'm proud of it, and don't care about getting another one".

The couple, who serve Blackwall and Cubitt Town and Millwall wards respectively, were targeted after a row over littering.
Cllr Briscoe, the Conservative spokesman on crime reduction in the borough, said: "The provocation was simply that Shirley pointed out the bin to them, as they were throwing their chips and food around the street, and at the staff in the chip shop.
"The three culprits then subjected us to a torrent of abuse, before snatching Shirley's mobile phone and smashing it to pieces, throwing bottles at us, and managing to get a couple of punches in on me from the side.
"We managed to drive them away before they had a chance to use the rock they had picked up from the nearby gardens."
The attack was broken up after a resident called the police, and officers from Limehouse were on the scene in around 10 minutes. The incident occurred at about 8.45pm at a chip shop in the Quarterdeck.
The councillors passed on the descriptions of their attackers to the police and are contacting housing association Toynbee Homes to check if their nearby CCTV cameras captured the incident.
They believe the trio are locals, as one claimed during the assault he had "lived here all my life".
Cllr Briscoe, who is standing for his party in City and East at next year's London Assembly elections, said: "Fortunately, my only injuries are a few bruises - and for Shirley, a broken mobile phone - but this just re-emphasises the problems we face in this area and the dangers of saying anything to the street-yobs that terrorise local people.
"In 90 per cent of the Island you're on your own, with no CCTV or patrols.
"Residents need more protection, and this has strengthened my resolve to push for that."
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