No Paul that is not what I said and certainly not what I meant.
Magistrates and Judges have the job of distinguishing the honest from the crafty.
That is why the genuine transgressor receives a small fine or in a recent case I was involved in, a conditional discharge, whereas the crafty or dishonest transgressor should receive a much heftier fine.
The law must have enough flexibility to account for the difference.
This is a main component of English law.
I have dealt with thousands of noise complaints and only a very few result in legal proceedings being instigated; proof I believe that the common sense approach is of paramount importance. But as I intimated earlier some people do not respond to this approach.
I admit some of my colleagues around the country are a little heavy handed and apply conditions that I would deem unreasonable.