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Our picturesque seaside town is being overrun by heroin junkies and shoplifters who flock to the streets like seagulls
THE 'English Riviera' has its name for good reason, with picturesque towns and stunning coastal landscapes.
And according to Graham Kerr, who gives Agatha Christie walking tours around Torquay, the comparisons go much deeper.
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He said: “People come here in very large numbers from every corner of the world. You only have to look in the harbour to see the wealth, there are some very wealthy people living here and they are drawn by the lifestyle.
“I had a lady last week from Marseille, she had flown over with her daughter. She told me she felt like she was home.
“Some people say we should have Formula One cars racing around the harbour - it’s that sort of place. It doesn’t feel like an English seaside town, it feels like a continental town.”
Certainly Torquay is popular with tourists and in 2021 it was the country’s top trending destination for staycations, according to TripAdvisor. The area attracts around 4.5million visitors a year, generating £435million to the economy.
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When The Sun visited last week, the harbour was abuzz with workers decorating and preparing for the busy summer season.
But a short walk away and it’s a very different story - with homelessness, shoplifting and drug abuse rife.
Rob Moncrieff, 48, who owns Molly's Ice Cream and Donuts on The Strand, said: “You’ve got a lot of alcoholics, drug addicts. They tend to move into town and you get aggressive begging, drunken behaviour, people dealing and using drugs and stealing.
“Every little thing you can think of, they’ll be getting away with. It’s starting to affect our business badly because if people don’t feel safe they won’t stop to buy an ice cream.
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“Last July there were 13 people we knew were begging along here but only one of them was actually homeless.
“I’ve worked in hospitality around this area all my life and I’ve never known so many people say 'we’re not coming back again'. Last year there was a group who had been coming for 20 years but said we’re never coming back again because we don’t like what we’re seeing.”
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Devon and Cornwall Police recently announced four weeks of “increased activity” in Torquay’s trouble hotspots.
The first 11 days of the four-week operation saw 33 arrests for drugs, shoplifting, warrant breaches and prison recall, with six arrests connected to moped thefts, police said.
Rob added: “It’s great that the police are doing this crackdown but everybody knows we need more police permanently. When this operation ends in a couple of weeks things will go back to the way they were before.”
The businessman said he holds Torbay Council responsible for many of the issues in the town. He said: “They do not do anything and we have been slowly sliding for years.
“Shops are closing all over town - ours used to be a goldmine and we’re still surviving but we’ve taken on a lot of debt. Lots of shops haven’t survived.
“We’ve got local elections in May but it doesn’t matter who gets elected, it’s going to be a mess. The council only cares about the harbour area, they spend millions of pounds there and there’s nothing left for anywhere else.”
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'Depressing' town
Last October, Lib Dem-led Torbay Council voted to borrow an extra £8million to fund building projects including the 120-bedroom Harbour View hotel. Less than three months later the council announced a planned 4.99 per cent increase in council tax.
Susie Colley, Chair of Torquay Chamber of Commerce, said: “We’ve got a lot of people here who will never work, whether they can’t or just don’t want to and they are like an anchor around the neck of Torquay.
“The very affluent are getting fed up with the state of everything, we don’t understand why the council can’t see that if you have clean streets and open shops it will encourage people to come down.
“We have got a beautiful bay but who is going to come when you have dog poo everywhere, bins aren’t emptied? The council do not listen to the general public and what will happen is the very wealthy will go and all that will be left is those who take and we will sink even further.
“We need more police in Torquay to help the shops flourish, to help wealthy people stay here and to help those that are not so wealthy decide not to shoplift.”
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Addicts 'shout all night'
Stepping into one of Torquay’s trouble hotspots of Castle Circus and Factory Row - which sit directly opposite Torbay Council’s HQ - feels a million miles from the harbour. The evidence of Torquay’s drug and homelessness problem is unmistakable.
One shopper described how heroin users descend daily "like a flock of seagulls" in a desperate bid to score their first fix of the day.
A recovering addict said: "It's constant - all day and all night. The police don't move them on. If this was any other ordinary road in Torbay, the police would be called, but nobody bothers here.
"I've been off heroin and crack cocaine for about two years. I have overdosed and been brought back from the dead twice in the past. The ambulance people said I stopped breathing and they gave me six injections before I started breathing again.
"For me the worst thing about living here is the constant shouting. I can hear it all night long from my window. It drives me mad. They shouldn't be loitering around here at two, three, four in the morning. They are trying to get drugs or numbers for the dealers. That's all you hear people talking about all day - drugs, drugs, drugs.
"Youngsters come past winding them up and shouting 'Smackheads' at them. The police sometimes move them on in the day but it puzzles me why they don't get moved along at night."
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Needless risk to kids
Stefanie Curran, 39, set up charity Punk Against Poverty following her own financial and housing struggles.
She said: “The problems in Torquay are enormous. We have so many kids growing up in poverty. Most of our work is seasonal in retail or tourism so there’s a big gap in the winter and minimum wages mean even people in full-time work can’t cover their expenses.
“Substance abuse is also a really big problem. Our old shop was just at the top of town and it was happening all around us. Every day we had shoplifters, every day we had problems.
“One day somebody came in and collapsed from an overdose. Dealing with those issues was a regular occurrence.
“I won’t use some car parks because of the amount of needles and other residue. I’d rather risk getting a parking ticket than putting my kids at risk.
“We had to close our clothing bank at the end of February which is devastating. We were the only one in the area and we had so many referrals from the council but they wouldn’t fund the £10,000 per year cost of storing and washing all the clothes that were donated.
“It was helping 800 people per year and it wasn’t just clothes, it was school uniforms, tents and sleeping bags which are potentially life-saving for people. It’s gutting.”
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'The best'
But even in Castle Circus, some locals defended the area. Blanche Worthington, 69, and husband Barry, 70, have lived in Torquay for over 50 years.
Pointing out a large stone planter recently modified with upright stones to stop anybody sitting around its edges, Blanche said: “My husband and I used to sit here when we were 18 but they have done this to stop homeless people congregating there.
“It is sad to see so many shops empty but I don’t think anything needs knocking down. It needs updating with some better shops and the council isn’t doing too badly. It’s a nice place to live and the seafront is beautiful."
Barry added: “I’ve lived and worked lots of places both here and abroad and Torquay is one of the best.”
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A Torbay Council spokesperson said: “Like other coastal communities, Torbay has its challenges, but we are committed to reducing the associated poverty, deprivation and inequalities that exist here whilst also providing more opportunities for our residents, businesses and those who visit the Bay.
"The global pandemic, the rising cost-of-living and increasing inflation are having a huge impact on our residents and businesses, especially as we have a high number of low-income households, a low skill economy, a shortage of affordable properties and an ageing population.
"We are committed to listening to our residents, businesses, communities and other organisations and are creating a culture of working together to help our residents to thrive."
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The recent four-week police operation resulted in a total of 41 arrests.
Acting Chief Superintendent Ed Wright, South Devon Commander, said cops will “evaluate and reflect on the results and look to see how we can be more effective and visible with our resources".
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