§ 10. Mr. LoydenTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to reduce crime in the inner cities.
§ Mr. John PattenWe shall continue our efforts to reduce crime with a range of appropriate measures — first, by strengthening the manpower available to the police and encouraging chief officers to deploy more officers on the streets. Second, through the ministerial group on crime prevention a range of initiatives is under way to promote crime prevention in inner urban areas. Thirdly, the Home Office five towns initiative has shown the value of bringing key public, private and voluntary sector agencies together in combating crime. We are now urgently studying how best to promote this co-operative, locally based, approach in the inner cities.