Councillor John Blundell thinks the only solution is to make begging unprofitable

The fundamental principle of economics is that people, or agents as we like to call them, respond to incentives. Nothing ‘drives’ anything, people make choices based upon the option that offers them the greatest incentive.

Often money is the means of incentivising people to do things they wouldn't opt to do otherwise, like work. Conversely it is also used to disincentivise things we like to do but shouldn’t, like smoking, which is heavily taxed. It is because of incentives that communism doesn’t work; why bust a gut when your comrades will pick up the slack and the reward is the same? Mao and Stalin understood work must be incentivised but were fundamentally against capitalism. They turned to murdering the population as means of getting the remainder to work harder and faster. The fear it instilled in the citizens of the USSR was also convenient for ensuring the communist dictators maintained their power. The incentive to kill their political opponents was so great they followed through with it on an industrial scale. The point here is: if the incentive is great enough people will do virtually anything. This is why aggressive begging is rife in our city centre.

Recent police figures revealed that fewer than one in five people arrested for begging were homeless

The current incentive structure results in people - especially at this time of year - taking to the streets to make money. Many people ask why: mental health? Crime? The economy? Identifying the why will not solve the problem. Changing the incentive structure will. In one of Sir Richard Leese's council leader blogs he urges people to not give beggars food, clothing or money. He believes that the cash will end up in an off licence or in the hands of criminals. He also reminds people a lot of begging is organised. These distraught people fear for their lives because of gang members and criminals; handing over cash finances their activities. Suzanne Moore, writing for The Guardian, however, describes begging as 'quaintly entrepreneurial'. Quaintly entrepreneurial? I call it a disgrace, and can't believe what more and more people will turn to because of government welfare policies. Moore's argument is based upon the idea that there is no other choice for some. That we should let beggars get on with it, they aren't doing any harm. Codswallop. Giving out money might, for some, help in the short term, but I'm with Leese on this one. I feel sorry for people who beg - they clearly need our help - but I don't believe allowing them to continue in this way is the answer. They don't need our pity, they need to accept and seek help.

The police should make begging unprofitable through the use of Public Space Protection Orders (PSPO)

The authorities should endeavour to make it unprofitable for aggressive beggars to operate in our city. One way they can do this is through the use of Public Space Protection Orders (PSPO). Salford City Council have been successful in deterring anti-social behaviour in MediaCity through the use of a PSPO. In Rochdale we introduced such an order so that we could clear away aggressive beggars, but mainly to clear away yobs. Some liberals dubbed our new PSPO the ‘swearing ban’, leading people to believe that every Tom, Dick and Harry using loose language would be slapped with a fine. In reality the order is used sparingly on those people who seek to ruin our town centres.

Manchester Council leader Sir Richard Leese says most of the money given to beggars just ends in drugs or alcohol'

On a very serious note, some people are forced into begging (Antislavery.org makes for some grim reading). People are trafficked and told to beg or face brutality; it is a real form of modern slavery. There is only one way to solve this issue... crack down. Fine aggressive beggars and arrest them. Our system should be robust enough to be able to differentiate between somebody who is taking the mick and somebody who needs our help. Some beggars will not stop, no matter what help we offer them, because begging is profitable. Do you think somebody who is in fear of their life will accept help and come willingly? We won’t be able to help modern slaves until they believe they are safe from their captors. They are safe with the police, not on the street.

Money raised through fines should be given to homeless charities

For those reading this who can’t believe I am calling for beggars to be arrested, the only reason we aren’t doing this already is because of public finances, not out of the goodness of our hearts. These people need our help and if we need to use our resources to lift them from the streets, so be it. The money raised through the use of PSPOs should be given to Mayor Andy Burnham’s homeless fund or the like. This way, genuinely homeless people who fall foul of PSPOs would benefit in the long-term. Remove the incentive to beg aggressively and the problem will subside, organised begging would be much reduced and the homeless services would be better off financially. Giving out money only locks these people into a destructive cycle of dependency, which is good for no one, except, sadly, criminals.

While you're here... Vending machine for the homeless to be installed in Manchester