TAYSIDE HAS Scotland’s second-worst record of offending by under-10s, shocking new figures have revealed.

Tayside Police aim to tackle the problem early in a bid to cut crime by the very young.

Only Strathclyde, with 1200 offences committed by the under-10s, had a bigger problem.

Tayside, saw 900 offences by 600 children.

The Scottish Executive is prepared to send in a task force to help areas failing to cope with the problem.

Scotland’s eight police forces have published crime statistics for the first time.

They show that between last April and March this year, almost 3000 children from eight to 10 were charged with offences.

Most were related to disorder, dishonesty and motoring, although there was one Tayside case involving a serious sexual offence.

A Tayside Police spokesperson said, “Serious crimes committed by those under the age of 10 are a rare occurrence in Tayside.

“The majority of offences committed by children are vandalisms or breaches of the peace.

“We work closely with parents, the education department, social workers and other agencies, in order to identify children at risk, in the hope that early intervention will change the behaviour of the child involved.

“It is important to stress that the children who are repeat offenders are in the minority.

“The vast majority of children in Tayside are law-abiding citizens.”

Dundee East MSP Shona Robison said more resources are needed.

The first tool should be education, but she also wants to increase the powers of the children’s panel system, particularly on persistent offenders.

Ms Robison also said more secure unit places are needed.

A Scottish Executive spokesperson said, “We want the behaviour of young offenders to be challenged and changed so there are fewer crimes across Scotland.

“We have provided considerable investment in local services.

“Youth justice funding is now at £63 million per year.

“Young people’s offending is now being tackled more quickly as a result of the investment and reform driven forward in the children’s hearings system.

“Local agencies are getting a better grip on who the main offenders are.”

He said measures such as new laws on anti-social behaviour are providing a focus for local action.

“But too many areas are still not delivering the necessary improvements for their local communities and are not progressing towards nationally-agreed standards of performance, particularly in terms of persistent young offenders.”

He pledged “additional support” for areas which are are “off the pace,” ensuring they learn from more successful areas.