§ Simon HughesTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many(a) local authorities and (b) police services have applied to introduce a local child curfew; how many local child curfews have been introduced; and if he will make a statement. [29689]
678W
§ Mr. Denham[holding answer 28 January 2002]: No applications have been received to impose child curfew schemes under section 14 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. Sections 48 and 49 of the Criminal Justice and Police Act 2001, which took effect on 1 August 2001, extended the upper age limit to 15 and allowed the police, as well as local authorities, to initiate schemes. Local areas are assessing the implications of these changes and we know that local consultation is taking place in some of them. Applications to establish curfews are a discretionary matter for local authorities and the police, to be considered in the light of local needs and wider strategies to deal with disorder in their areas.