I have spoken this week to several readers about the recent late-night violence that resulted in a man being stabbed in Epping’s High Street. So many have expressed concern and asked what is being done by our elected representatives. Although a violent extreme, the incident was by no means an isolated case. Late-night anti-social behaviour is a weekly occurrence and it puts the town to shame. It is therefore pleasing to see the area’s MP Eleanor Laing question the late licences issued to clubs and bars in the area. The inevitable consequence of late licences is that club-goers become more drunk. Drink-filled revellers equals drink-fuelled violence. The equation really is that simple.

But people in the town we have spoken to this week also believe a lack of policing is equally at fault. I have some sympathy for police commanders trying to achieve the near impossible with increasingly limited resources. But the fact is police on the beat are rapidly becoming an endangered species. Visible policing is the best deterrent there is and goes a long way to reassure the public.