Many children and teenagers who commit offences do so simply because they are out and about after dark, not because they are set on a life of criminal damage and petty theft. Ensure they stay indoors at night and there is a chance they might revert back to more acceptable behaviour.

Ideally, of course, this power ought to be exercised by parents but in the case of persistent young offenders there is often a lack of control in the home.

So Northern Constabulary's request that existing curfew powers are extended to cover children make a great deal of sense. As we revealed on Friday the move comes against a backdrop of a 15 per cent rise in the number of offences committed by youngsters aged 17 and under in the Inverness area over the past three years, bucking the national trend which is downward.

There are many reasons for this, from the breakdown of community cohesion as the city expands to simple population growth and the inevitability that more people will mean more crime. Increased pressure on families caused by rising unemployment is only likely to make the problem worse.

Police constantly stress that Inverness remains the safest city in Britain in which to live, and they are right to do so. But it is good to see that Northern Constabulary is also acknowledging the very real problems it faces and proposing innovative measure to tackle them.

The ability to apply for curfew orders for persistent offenders under the age of 16 would be a sensible step forward and one that it is difficult to see too many arguments against. For communities plagued by vandalism and anti-social behaviour, the potential benefits are obvious and immediate. But for the youngsters too there would be advantages.

Removing them from the environment in which they offend is a simple common sense move. The existence of a legal order, backed up by police action if required, would reinforce the authority of those parents who might currently try but fail to keep their 14-year-old at home of an evening. As a carrot to balance the stick, the move could be linked to initiatives such as basketball and football sessions so that the children were offered positive alternatives to hanging around the local park that they might choose to continue once the curfew order expired. Perhaps youth organisations such as the Scouts and cadet forces could even become involved.

The main danger is that curfews become a badge of honour amongst troubled youth just as anti-social behaviour orders have done, to the point where they are largely discredited in some areas. But that should not stop Northern Constabulary's proposal being piloted with Inverness, a clearly defined area with a measurable problem, an ideal place to start.

We hope ministers will lend their support.

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