Rioters harboured hefty haul of shame

One in every eight thugs arrested by Greater Manchester Police during the riots already had 50 or more criminal offences to their name.

The staggering figures, revealed by the Ministry of Justice, show 12.1 per cent of men involved and 6.7 per cent of women had a long list of previous crimes.

Almost half of all the under-17s involved in the trouble had a criminal past and 82 per cent of adults had at least one previous brush with the law.

Greater Manchester Police made 335 arrests. Of those, 219 were charged, 65 bailed pending further inquiries and five were given cautions after the disturbances last month.

Government figures show 198 people have appeared before courts in the area, of which 62 were locked up, including 11 under 17-year-olds. Dozens more remain in custody or on conditional bail. Only two were acquitted.