§ Caroline FlintTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what funding he has made available for community-based projects(a) to tackle drug abuse and (b) to promote safer communities since May 1997. [99529]
§ Ms Beverley HughesThe Department operates two major community-based regeneration programmes, the Single Regeneration Budget (SRB) and the New Deal for Communities (NDC).
The SRB's multiple objectives, designed to tackle poverty and social exclusion, include a specific objective 211W of tackling crime and drug abuse and improving community safety. It is not possible to identify funding made available specifically for projects tackling drug abuse or promoting safer communities. However, since May 1997, 213 out of 284 successful bids under rounds 4 and 5 gave crime prevention or community safety as key objectives. Anti-drug proposals would be covered by these objectives. Details of the successful bids were placed in the Library of the House.
The first round of the NDC was launched in September 1998 and the second round on 10 November 1999. Anti-drug measures feature in all of the plans of the first round partnerships and are likely to feature in second round plans too. However, it is not possible to identify how much NDC funding will be used specifically for anti-drug and community safety activities.