Get tough on crime

"Get tough on crime"(or simply "tough on crime") is a slogan often used by supporters of law and order political platforms. Users of the term generally advocate for changes to the legal system which would increase sentence lengths and other punishments for criminals. Proponents of "tough on crime" measures often describe those not in favour of such measures as being "soft on crime". Critics of such approach often voice the concern that this approach often results in prison sentences excessive for the crime and neglects to provide the funding and the logistics to support the tough on crime agenda.

A variant on the slogan, tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime, was used by Tony Blair in his first speech as Shadow Home Secretary to the 1992 Labour Party Conference. Blair's quote within the speech was noted for appealing over the audience in the hall of traditional Labour supporters to the general electorate. It also sign posted a shift in the party's policy away from libertarian approaches though offered a promise that this would be balanced by a programme for social justice. The speech also marked Blair as one of the coming men of the Party.

The actual slogan "tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime" was first used in that form in an article by Tony Blair entitled "Why crime is a socialist issue" in the New Statesman on 29 January 1993.

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