English resort sees crime fall after mankini clampdown
May 28, 2015, 7:42 AM
LONDON (AP) — It was one small ban for mankinis, one giant step for an English seaside resort town.
Officials in Newquay say crime has fallen since they cracked down on stag parties with revelers wearing the revealing one-piece garments.
The town in southwest England is a haven for surfers and also attracts large numbers of young partygoers.
After two teenagers fell from cliffs to their deaths in 2009, residents protested about the excessive partying.
Police clamped down on anti-social behavior, including public drunkenness and the wearing of “inappropriate clothing,” including the sling-style men’s swimsuits made notorious by comic character Borat, which one senior police officer called “revolting.”
Police said Thursday that reported cases of anti-social behavior had nearly halved since 2009-2010, and crime fell from 1,823 incidents in 2012-2013 to 1,624 incidents in 2014-2015.
Police Inspector Dave Meredith said the town had seen “a miraculous improvement.”
Newquay mayor David Sleeman said the town was unrecognizable from a few years ago, when “you couldn’t walk the streets on a Saturday without seeing someone wearing a mankini or what have you.”
“But now they’re not allowed in Newquay. The police will tell them to go home and get changed if they see them wearing one, and the guest houses and campsites are pretty good at warning their guests about what’s acceptable.
“I think we have turned the corner here.”
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