'Mini Asbo' support growing

MORE than 100 people in East Lothian have been given "mini Asbos" during the last three years after signing contracts promising they will behave.

A total of 113 people signed acceptable behaviour contracts (ABCs) in the county since June 2007, when they were formally adopted into local practice.

Children as young as eight have been made to sign ABCs in the Lothians in a bid to combat tearaways terrorising the community.

Those breaking the contracts risk being taken to court or even having their families evicted from council homes.

The contracts are not legally binding and some people have simply refused to sign them.

But police and council chiefs say they are a valuable tool in preventing antisocial behaviour.

Figures for the Capital showed that 119 Asbos had been issued in Edinburgh over the last five years.