‘Thuggish’ behaviour could see balaclavas banned in Newport

Newport college students Luie and Nath, both 16, are supportive of a ban.

“It just looks dodgy,” said Luie, “I think they should ban it. I think if you wear one you’re up to no good.

“If you stop these face coverings, you’ll stop crime, people can recognise you, there’s CCTV everywhere, if you remove face coverings – it’s a simple fix really.”

“There’s a lot of crime going on and they’re common around the city centre,” Nath added.

“I just don’t think they need to wear them – bad things come with them.”

Gabreille said: “I think it’s a good idea – they go around on their motorbikes intimidating people with their balaclavas on – and probably involved in crime and never get caught.

“It’s quite intimidating when you’re walking and they just zoom past you.

“I don’t very often go into town – you feel intimidated wherever you go because there’s a lot of antisocial behaviour going on.

“I tend to stay out of their way.”

Photographer Attela Kis, 32, is concerned about the effect it may have on people choosing to cover their faces for religious reasons.

“It depends on what type of face covering you’re talking about – like a Burka for example, this is part of their religion,” he said.

“When people are riding their electric bikes and committing actual crimes, it’s really dangerous.

“They shouldn’t cover their faces, if anyone gets hit – or anything gets stolen people need to be found and prosecuted.”