IF drafting in some Police Community Support Officers cleans up the dog excrement and litter in our neighbourhoods then that is a good thing.

But it again raises the question about what Pcsos are actually there for.

They were originally a hugely controversial introduction to the police ‘family’, seen by most as a cheap way of getting bodies (but not bobbies) on the beat in uniforms that at a distance could be mistaken for a conventional Pc.

It is true they were meant to give a greater police presence on the streets and clamping down on antisocial behaviour, the low-grade annoyances which get out of control in some neighbourhoods, was one of their briefs.

But were they really envisaged as being effectively seconded to sort out issues which councils have the powers to sort out, like dog fouling and litter?

The answer has to be ‘No’, or they would have had that brief originally.

We are in no way against someone sorting out these blights. It is desperately needed.

But if the city council is not able to deal with issues it is responsible for, surely it is not for the police to bail it out. And similarly, if 57 Pcsos are able to be given this new role, what are they doing for our under-pressure police force in the first place?