Wrexham MP Ian Lucas is due to meet meet with council officials today to ensure public concerns about anti-social behaviour are addressed and to offer support to tackle the problem.

Before the General Election, Mr Lucas raised a questions in the Commons with ministers responsible for tackling anti-social behaviour and sought information about government policy on psychoactive substances, formerly known as ‘legal highs’.

The questions came after discussions with senior Wrexham Council officers about the issue and Mr Lucas will meet with officers and councillors to discuss the replies and what further pressure can be put on the UK Government to help the council to deal with the problem.

Mr Lucas will also ask what else Wrexham Council could be doing to tackle the issue locally.

He said: “Countless businesses, shoppers and visitors to Wrexham have spoken to me about the negative impact groups of drug and alcohol users are having on Wrexham town centre.

“During my election campaign, the state of the town centre was a constant issue.

“At my last surgery, I heard from a delegation of Rhosddu businesses.

“It is the highest priority for Wrexham people.

“Any plans for town centre regeneration will be hamstrung by allowing the current situation to continue.”

Mr Lucas added: “I told the Conservative lead council member, Hugh Jones, at the last Town Centre Forum meeting on June 6 that the council needed to introduce more staff to combat anti-social behaviour in the town centre.

“Work is being done – much of it in partnership with others such as the police, who I have already spoken to on this issue – but we need to step up our efforts to address this problem.

“I’ll, of course, continue working to highlight the issue with ministers in the Home Office, Ministry of Justice and elsewhere.

“I had raised specific questions at the direct request of the council just before the election was called. I’ll be following up responses to these in today’s meeting.

“I’ll also continue pressing the UK Government for more policing resources as community policing has reduced massively in Wrexham.

“We had more police officers, supported by community support officers, before 2010 and the reduction in policing has contributed to the deterioration of the town centre environment.”