Police in parts of Zuid Holland province (which includes The Hague and Rotterdam) have begun photographing and registering the personal details of youths who hang around on street corners even if they have not been convicted of a crime.

Police say recording information about so-called hangjongeren will help them to improve their control of nuisance caused by gangs of teenagers – usually boys. Christian Democrat and Labour MPs have called on the privacy watchdog CBP to check if privacy rules are not being broken.