Youngsters on high-crime estates who stay out of trouble and help their community could be rewarded with clothes and music vouchers under plans unveiled today by Tony Blair.

The Prime Minister, in his latest attack on yob culture, said that he wanted to introduce new incentives to encourage responsible behaviour.

But he also announced new powers to make yobs and vandals clear up damage.

Under current legislation, the Youth Justice Board can make reparation orders against young hooligans whose offences have directly affected other people.

But it has no powers in cases of crimes that affect the whole community, such as daubing graffiti on the side of buildings.

During the first six months of the reparation orders being available in Brighton and Hove, only 23 were made. There were 19 in East Sussex and 29 in West Sussex.

Mr Blair told community and business leaders in Croydon he wanted to see greater use of the powers, introduced last July.

He promised to change the legislation so the Youth Justice Board can make reparation orders to pick up litter or remove graffiti.

Brighton Pavilion MP David Lepper said the new powers would work hand-in-hand with the crackdown on graffiti announced by police and community leaders earlier this month.

The Labour MP said: "Graffiti creates the impression that people who live in the community do not care but that is not the case."