The 44-year-old rocker blames "brutal TV and videogames" for the outbreaking of violence and destruction that has swept several major cities since the weekend, and thinks there are currently no punishment strong enough to deter young people from criminal behaviour.

He said: "I can’t understand where their energy for these riots is coming from. We live in this age of violence – and I don’t care what other people say: Brutal TV and brutal video games are a reason for this pointless violence as well. The people are immune to violence, they are used to it. And if they get caught they aren’t punished the right way. The prisons are already full? Then build new ones!

"It’s crazy! It’s just violence for the sake of violence. The people who are at these riots aren’t poor. These are kids with f***ing mobile phones and all sorts of shit. The police and government have to take drastic measures."

The former Oasis star – whose brother Liam's Pretty Green store in Manchester was attacked during one rampage – criticized the stupidity of those involved in the disturbances for destroying their own communities.

He added: "These idiots destroy their own communities. In six weeks, when everything is forgotten, they will look stupid and realize that the houses are still destroyed, burned down or whatever. These people aren’t demanding anything, they have no goals. They just destroy their own s**t. How stupid can you be?"

Noel also condemned the "f***ing idiots" involved in the riots – which were sparked following the shooting of Mark Duggan by London police last week – for their "pointless" actions, insisting there were no valid reasons behind their actions.

He said: "There aren’t any reasons! There’s a guy who gets shot – a gangster if I may add that, who had a gun. If you live by the sword, you die by the sword! Then suddenly there are riots everywhere. There is no reason for that. It’s just pointless violence of fucking idiots… When it rains no one is rioting! And you can always rely on rain in London – except for now when we would need it."