§ Mr. Gordon PrenticeTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the bloodhound in helping to track down suspects and detect criminal activity. [70885]
§ Mr. BoatengIn April 1998, the Policing and Reducing Crime Unit at the Home Office supported an application under the Police Research Award Scheme from Essex Police to purchase and train two Bloodhound and two German Shepherd puppies. The proposal was to train the puppies in an alternative tracking method known as scent discrimination. This method depends on the dog tracking the individual scent of the person rather than the scent of the ground disturbance they have left.
The results of the study are being analysed at the moment and a full report will go to all Police Forces as soon as the analysis is complete, which is expected within three months.
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