ALTHOUGH Britain does not have an enshrined constitution, this country's common law has long been the bastion of our civil rights.

One of the key elements of our society is the rule of law. For our society to not only be protected, but feel it is protected, justice must not only be done, but be seen to be done.

That is why we welcome the new banning orders issued under the Sexual Offences Act 2003.

One such order has been used on a Worcester man, who is now banned from the city's Gheluvelt Park and several city streets.

This man is now under an interim sexual offences prevention order, which restricts his movements and behaviour for three months.

But the court could have been even tougher on the alleged Worcester offender.

The Sexual Offences Act 2003 leaves it up to the individual judge to specify what conditions should be applied to the prevention order - effectively allowing an order to be tailored to the circumstances of each individual.

Earlier this month, a sex offender in Bristol became the subject of Britain's first sexual offences prevention order that, among other things, bans him from contacting anyone under 16, going within 100m of a school or play area, and prevents him from living in or visiting the same house as a child.

We welcome the introduction of these orders and believe that their use will not only prevent crime, but bolster that most fragile of things, the public's confidence in the rule of law.