A ban on face coverings and balaclavas in Nottingham could come into force by the end of the year.
Nottingham City Council recently consulted on a new three-year Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) to crack down on nuisance behaviours such as busking and begging.
Senior city councillor Matt Shannon said there was a problem in the city with people wearing face coverings “to hide their identities whilst engaging in anti-social behaviour”, and people had highlighted this during the consultation.
Cllr Shannon, executive member for community protection, neighbourhoods and equalities, said the authority would be further consulting on a ban on face coverings this week, with a view to bring enforcement in by the end of the year.
At a meeting on Monday (July 13) he said: “We will all have seen individuals wearing balaclavas in recent 30C heat and rightly asked questions.
“We know the public feel strongly on this issue. The council recently finished consultation on a Public Space Protection Order to give us powers to tackle anti-social behaviour in the city centre. When asked for input on other issues, a significant number of the 1,400 people responded adding they wanted to see a balaclava ban.”
However, he said there had been some concern over individuals calling for a ban on head coverings worn for religious reasons.
“I want to be clear on this point, Nottingham Labour will not be proposing any head-covering bans because it is not required,” he said, before adding there would be an exemption for face or head coverings worn for religious and medical reasons.
The council has also been seeking to crack down on nuisance e-scooter and e-bike riders in the city centre, particularly Old Market Square.
A separate PSPO for alcohol-related anti-social behaviour is also being consulted on.
Leader of the council, Cllr Neghat Khan, added the council has been taking “robust action” against e-bikes, e-scooters and anti-social behaviour by working with the police.
She said the city had been ranked the seventh most unsafe city outside of London, according to Home Office data, and changing this was her “number one priority”.
“This is an issue residents raise with me time and again,” she said.
“They are fed up with people illegally riding e-bikes and scooters, often wearing balaclavas or face coverings to avoid being identified, intimidating others and making our streets feel less safe.
“I will shortly be launching my Respect for Nottingham Board, bringing together the council, Nottinghamshire Police, businesses and community representatives, every month to drive coordinated action on community safety, anti-social behaviour and the quality of our neighbourhoods.
“It won’t be sitting in Loxley House. We will walking the streets in the city centre actually seeing what residents and businesses are complaining about.”
She said a decision would be expected on the face coverings ban in September, before being put in place by the end of the year if the public supported one.
By Joe Locker, Local Democracy Reporter