This week, Buckingham MP Greg Smith writes exclusively to BFP readers:

There can be no more important function of government than ensuring everyone is safe from crime — and feels safe in their own home and neighbourhood.

We are very lucky in Buckinghamshire to be served by first rate Police officers in Thames Valley Police, but there is always more that can be done to improve safety and beat the criminals.

I was therefore delighted to see the Government publish this week a new Beating Crime plan. It is a plan to build on the achievements of the past two years — more police officers, increased resources and tougher sentences — to provide our law enforcement with everything they need to prevent, deter, and crack down on crime.

At its heart the plan combines prevention, deterrence, and enforcement. It puts victims first and supports the dedicated and hardworking men and women from across our criminal justice system who keep us safe.

Some of the key commitments from the plan include:

n Providing every person in England and Wales with access to the contact details of neighbourhood police officers, ensuring the public know that local help is always available

n Spending £17 million on youth interventions, providing high-intensity specialist support to young people to stop them from entering a life of crime

n Expanding the use of electronic monitoring for serious offenders and tracking the movements of criminals upon release from prison, supporting our police in deterring and detecting further crimes.

n Introducing Knife Crime Prevention Orders, prohibiting those most at risk from carrying knives

n Relaxing voluntary conditions on Section 60 stop and search powers, reducing the number of weapons on our streets

n Continuing to shut down scams and fraudulent websites, making it harder for fraudsters to target the UK.

I hope you will agree that the Beating Crime plan is the most comprehensive and far-reaching strategy of its kind yet.

Please do read the whole plan on the Government website at www.gov.uk/government/publications/beating-crime-plan - and let me know what you think (greg.smith.mp@parliament.uk).