§ Mr. LawsTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the level of repeat offending by drug misusing offenders was in(a)1997, (b) 1998 and (c) 2001; and if he will make a statement. [66289]
§ Mr. Bob AinsworthThe New English and Welsh Arrestee Drug Abuse Monitoring (NEW-ADAM) research programme currently provides estimates of repeat offending by drug misusing offenders for the purpose of tracking the drugs strategy. Repeat offending drug misusing offenders are defined as the proportion of arrestees who are using heroin and/or cocaine and/or crack at least once a week and who have offended at least twice a month in the last 12 months. The proportion of arrestees falling within the definition of repeat offending drug misusing offenders category was 15 per cent. for the financial year 1999–2000 (the first year of data collection). This only represents an interim figure from eight fieldwork sites. A summary of the full, two-year data from 16 sites (1999–01) is due be published later this year.
We are currently reviewing the drugs strategy targets and progress against them, including those concerning drugs and crime, to ensure we still have the right balance and focus. As part of this review, researchers in the Home Department are undertaking work to improve our ability to track changes over time in drug-related crime.