THE BURNT-OUT car was still warm, although the joyriders were long gone. "It's not from round here," muttered the taxi-driver as he inspected the wreckage. "No-one here could afford one of those."
Welcome to Scotswood, a sprawling estate in Newcastle's West-End, where the scars of deprivation and decay run deep. A place the politicians believe is a typical breeding ground for the "yobs" whose crimes are costing Britain £4 billion a year.
Once again, law and order is top of the political agenda. Both Labour and the Tories are determined to prove just how tough they will be, singling out juveniles for special treatment. Internment camps, electronic tagging, blanket curfews and parental fines are some of the treats in store for persistent offenders.
More than seven million crimes are committed in Britain by juveniles a year, a rise of over a third since 1987. The fastest growing offenders are teenage boys aged 10 to 13.
Earlier this month, one of the country's most notorious teenage criminals was finally jailed for four years' youth custody.
For years "Rat Boy's" exploits had dominated the headlines. He seemed to be beyond the law, laughing at the authorities.
Now aged 17, Anthony Kennedy, from Byker, east Newcastle, epitomises the public's fears over law and order. At the age of 10 he embarked on a crime spree during which he committed more than 100 burglaries and thefts, assaulted a policeman and became addicted to Valium.
Despite his parents pleading for tough action, the authorities were powerless to impose any kind of real punishment because of his age. Placed into care at a cost of £200,000, Anthony absconded 37 times, hiding in the ventilation tunnels - hence his nickname.
"What he needed was a short, sharp shock," his mother says. "If he had been jolted early on, then there's a chance he might have changed. People criticised us for not putting him under control, but unless we had chained him to the bed, how could we stop him sneaking out at night?"
Scotswood is traditional Labour territory. Yet its residents and community workers wish the party would actually listen to their views on the causes of crime.
Unemployment is endemic. The schools are among the worst in the country, with truancy running above the national average. Glue and alcohol are the favoured drugs. Following riots in 1991 police installed security cameras to monitor the streets.
"Basically, the politicians are blaming the kids, families, single parents, for the rising crime rate says Tony Mason, a regeneration consultant. "But it is their own lack of investment in education, housing and jobs that causes these problems."
Bill Hopkinson (61) has lived in Scotswood for over 40 years.
Since 1993, his house has been burgled nine times and he has had three attempted break-ins.
"They've taken everything and what they haven't taken they've smashed," he says. "The sprays have gone and the glue. They even took my little tubes of glue for my models. They would kill for it.
After listening to his recollections, Alice Cuthill (42), another local resident and Labour Party activist, interrupts to say she feels sorry for the local children even though her son, Peter, was stabbed in the leg by some youths trying to steal his bicycle.
"When I was a kid I used to go to the youth club for a dance," she says. "We made our own enjoyment. There is nothing for the kids to do now. They are bored."
Rose McCourt, a mother of eight children who has lived in Scotswood for 44 year, believes that the blanket curfew which is advocated by both the Tories and Labour would not work because the police do not have the necessary manpower.
And internment camps would "turn the kids into hardened criminals", she says. The only solution is investment in the area.
"When we were kids we left school at IS and got a job," Ms McCourt says. "From then on you stopped being a child and were an adult. Now you've got 20, 23 year olds wandering the streets without a job and the 12, 13, 14 year olds looking up to them and out of control."