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The tone of the debate was set by Home Secretary William Whitelaw 's introductory statement in which he spoke of ( a ) the need to ‘ remove the scourge of criminal violence from our streets ’ , and ( b ) the urgency of developing ‘ policies designed to promote the mutual tolerance and understanding upon which the whole future of a free democratic society depends ’ ( Hansard , vol. 8 , 16 July 1981 : col. 1405 ) .