§ Mr. BurstowTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the pilot schemes announced since 1 May by his Department that involve local authorities in a lead or partnership capacity; if he will list each of the local authorities involved in each case; and what revenue and capital funding each local authority will receive through the pilot in (i) 1997–98, (ii) 1998–99, (iii) 1999–2000 and (iv) 2000–2001. [45335]
§ Mr. Straw[holding answer 11 June 1998]: As I announced in the reply I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Portsmouth, North (Mr. Rapson) on 3 June 1998, Official Report, column 219, we have identified nine local authority areas in which, in principle, we would like to pilot the new youth justice measures contained in the Crime and Disorder Bill [Lords].
Four areas—the London Boroughs of Hammersmith and Fulham, Kensington and Chelsea and the City of Westminster (jointly); Hampshire, Southampton, Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight (jointly); Wolverhampton; and Sheffield—have been identified to pilot the final warning scheme; the reparation order, action plan order, child safety order and parenting order; and youth offending teams.
Five areas—the London Borough of Lewisham; Luton and Bedfordshire (jointly); Devon; St. Helens; and Sunderland—have been identified to pilot the child safety order and parenting order, together with youth offending teams.
In addition, Blackburn and Northamptonshire are to pilot the final warning scheme and youth offending teams in the context of pilots of procedural changes recommended by the Review of Delay in the Criminal Justice System, to which my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Portsmouth, North also referred.
We aim to establish the pilot projects from October 1998. The pilots will operate for a period of 18 months. We envisage that, in addition to funding for the evaluation of the pilots, some Home Office funding will be available to help the pilot areas put in place the programmes and forms of intervention needed to undertake work under the final warning scheme and the new court orders. Funding will also be available to support any seminars based on experience in the pilot areas run during the pilots for benefit of other areas. We will discuss with the selected pilot areas how available funds can be used most effectively within their area.