ANYONE wondering why the young are so disenfranchised and disenchanted with society only needs look at the Frinton water fight to understand why.

Apparently, many of the youth of today claim they are bored. For the want of something to do, some go out drinking and vandalise their community.

The old folks shout out from their mobility scooters that in their day they made their own fun.

So a group of youths decide to do something for themselves – organise a fun water fight on Frinton Greensward to mark their departure to university. All well and good, or so you might think.

Except Tendring Council, in its infinite wisdom, decides to lay down the law and give a stern warning to the organiser that he ought to cancel the event, spelling out the consequences if he fails.

Apparently, he failed to fill in form ZNF143 in triplicate to comply with Regulation 739 Administration of Fun Activity.

Neither had he arranged for stewards, paramedics, insurance to cover dry–clean only clothes, closing off streets within a 15-mile exclusion zone, diversion of aircraft and evacuation of the elderly and infirm.

And so he cancels an event that could have shown the young in a positive light, all because something amiss might, just might, have happened.

Under the same logic, we should cancel the airshow because a plane might, just might, crash.

On the day itself, after the organiser pulled the plug and informed everyone, the authorities turn out en-masse.

Who was there? Well, eight police officers, three police community support officers (PCSOs), four special police officers, a British Transport Police sergeant, three rail service officers, two dog units and three council seafront wardens.

One wonders why this high-visibility policing is not evident in town centres on Friday and Saturday nights, where everyone knows serious crime happens. It is about time people in authority recognised that if you treat young people like responsible adults, they are more likely to behave like responsible adults.

Britain has failed its younger population; it is reaping the results of stigmatising an entire generation.

Respect for one another will go a long way towards repairing that damage.