§ 32. Mr. Ian BruceTo ask the Attorney-General if he will make a statement on the effectiveness of the Government's fast track prosecution of juveniles. [51720]
The Attorney-GeneralSince the Government announced their commitment to tackle delays in the youth justice system, there has been a significant increase in the number of court areas operating or planning to introduce fast-tracking schemes. From a figure shortly after the election of 12 youth court areas operating fast track schemes, there are now over 150 youth court areas either operating or planning to introduce schemes. The effect of these schemes cannot be fully evaluated yet but it is clear that real efforts are being made at a local level to respond. An example of a successful scheme is North Hampshire where the average time between charge and sentence has been reduced from 133 days to 89. The Government are confident that, taken together with the measures contained in the Crime and Disorder Bill, they will lead to a significant reduction in delays in the youth justice system.