With the relief road up and running successfully, taking most of the through traffic out of the town, Bingley's future is brighter than it has been for some years. There are extensive redevelopment plans for the place. Shoppers can now stroll around without having to endure the noise and the dust generated by never-ending lines of cars, lorries and buses. The scene is set for Bingley's big renaissance.

The last thing it needs, then, is a gang of young yobs terrorising shoppers in the town centre. Gang members, said to be aged between ten and 16, swear at passers-by when asked to move on and have been spotted taking items from shops.

The police say they are "not involved in high-level crime" but they are a nuisance. Leaving aside the probability that today's nuisances, if unchecked, could progress to become tomorrow's high-level criminals, these louts need stopping now for the damage they are doing to the quality of life of the people of Bingley and those visiting the town.

Sergeant Esther Hobbs, of the neighbourhood policing team, has said that action will be taken. That is good news. More high-profile policing of the type which has proved effective in tackling crime in some inner-city areas is clearly needed, not only in Bingley but in other smaller towns in the district.

For the action against the gang members to succeed, though, the police need the co-operation of the public in providing names. And they also need the parents of these disruptive yobs to take more interest in where their sons are and what they are doing.