§ Mr. DawsonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will set out, with statistical information relating as directly as possible to the Lancaster and Wyre constituency, the effect on Lancaster and Wyre of his Department's policies and actions since 2 May 1997. [154681]
§ Mr. Charles ClarkeThe Home Office is working to build a safe, just and tolerant society in which the rights and responsibilities of individuals, families and communities are properly balanced, and the protection and security of the public are maintained. Detailed information on the impact of Home Office policies across the full range of responsibilities is set out in Home Office Annual Reports. A copy of the most recent report, Home Office Annual Report 1999–2000, is available in the Library. The latest report will be published shortly. 213W Information on recorded crime and policing is also published. 'Recorded Crime England and Wales, 12 months to September 2000' and 'Police Service Strength England and Wales, 30 September 2000' can be found in the Library. The recorded crime statistics include information on recorded crime by Basic Command Unit and Crime and Disorder partnerships.
The impact of Home Office polices and actions is not normally examined by constituency and the statistics which the Department collects, such as recorded crime, cannot be matched in the way requested although set out are examples relating to the Lancaster and Wyre constituency or the immediate locality:
Closed Circuit Television (CCTV)
Wyre Community Safety Partnership was awarded £120,000 for a project entitled Wyre CCTV Unit. The scheme will consist of two CCTV units, capable of being deployed to any part of Wyre targeting short term crime 'hotspots' and communities, which are suffering from incidents of youth crime and disorder.
Youth Offending Teams (YOTs)
The Youth Justice Board (YJB) is funding two Intervention Schemes and one Bail Supervision Scheme in the Lancaster and Wyre area. Almost £57,000 is being funded towards Drugline Lancashire—Preston Arrest Referral and Cautioning Plus Project. The main aims of this project include the provision of direct services to challenge cycles of drug use and crime: counselling, information, befriending, advocacy, holistic welfare, early and crisis intervention. They also include the establishment of a networking system combining a focus on drugs, crime and young people.
Approximately £37,000 has been awarded for the Lancashire Restorative Justice Project. The main aim is to provide both victims and young offenders with the opportunity to communicate with one another in a safe environment in order that the offender may make amends for previous inappropriate behaviour and assist the victim to come to terms with the harm suffered.
A Bail Support Scheme has been awarded £191,000 in the area. The project aims to provide a practical alternative to magistrates and courts in Lancashire and Blackburn for remands to custody, secure accommodation and remands to local authority accommodation.
More generally, all of the policies of the Home Office will impact on the residents of Lancaster and Wyre to a greater or lesser extent. For example:
214W376 Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnerships have been established;racial harassment and racially motivated crimes have been made criminal offences by the Crime and Disorder Act 1998;the asylum backlog has been cut from 103,495 at the end of January 2000 to 66,195 by the end of December 2000; andgood progress is being made in reducing the incidence of fire deaths in England and Wales. They have dropped from 605 in 1997 to 534 in 1999.Information on the Home Office and its policies is also published on its website (www.homeoffice.gov.uk).