by Martin Jefferies

A top government minister has said reports of anti-social behaviour on a Ramsgate estate are the worst she has heard about since joining the Home Office three years ago.

Labour's Meg Hillier was left stunned by residents' complaints when she was quizzed about crime on a visit to the Whitehall area this afternoon.

She spent an hour at St Mark's Church Hall, Pysons Road, and pledged to take local people's concerns - including calls for a new community centre and CCTV cameras - to the heart of government.

Mrs Hillier, 41, said: "I'll be taking an action plan back to the Home Office and I'm sure that quick solutions including better youth provision and new security cameras could make a real difference to the lives of local residents.

"When Labour came to power in 1997, they were very few powers in place to deal with anti-social behaviour. Nowadays, we have some excellent tools in place, although it's clear that, on a local level, some of these aren't being used as effectively as they should be."

Mrs Hillier was supporting Labour candidate Stephen Ladyman, who is defending a majority of just 664 as he bids to retain the South Thanet constituency he has held since 1997.

The pair also listened to residents' calls for more neighbourhood police officers and for nuisance neighbours to be evicted when they break tenancy agreements.

Dr Ladyman, 57, said: "There has been an incredible effort over the past few years by local residents who really care about turning their neighbourhood around.

"We desperately need a community centre for the people of Whitehall and I'm convinced the recreation ground could be a beautiful asset, rather than the problem it is at the moment, given the right investment by the council."

Mrs Hillier's visit - two weeks before the polls open in the general election - came just hours after William Hague, the shadow foreign secretary, joined Conservative candidate Laura Sandys on the campaign trail in Ramsgate.

The Liberal Democrats' Peter Bucklitsch and the UK Indpendence Party's Trevor Shonk are the other two candidates in the running for the South Thanet seat.

What do you think? Is the estate that bad? Give us your thoughts in the comment box below.