THE NEW get-tough policy by Blackburn with Darwen Council over tenants behind with their rent may seem harsh - when officials are set to pounce on debts as small as a £1 and evict those owing as little as £105.

But with having the grim record of being the authority with the most rent arrears in Lancashire and having in the past written off huge amounts of debt, it is high time the council cracked down.

And not just for the sake of the town's householders who do pay their dues on time and yet suffer from this debt burden, but also for that of the tenants who find themselves struggling with bills.

For, just as the thinking behind this new policy shows, the deeper debt is, all the harder it is to get out of.

And since the new system couples firm threat with advice and help for tenants falling behind with their rent, there is strong expectation that rents arrears will fall much faster than they did when they were allowed to slide.

The scheme is plain common sense. The public's only scruple over it must be the question of why it was not introduced years ago.

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