§ Phil SawfordTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people in(a) England and Wales and (b) Scotland have been given a drug treatment and testing order in each year for which figures are available who otherwise would have received a prison sentence of over six months. [174852]
§ Paul GogginsInformation about how many offenders in England and Wales and Scotland given a drug treatment and testing order (DTTO) who would otherwise have received a prison sentence of over six months is not available.
1193WIt is impossible to predict with any degree of accuracy what the outcome of cases where a DTTO was made would have been if the DTTO had not been available as a sentencing option. However, the DTTO is targeted at offenders with entrenched patterns of drug misuse who have generally committed a considerable amount of crime to fund their drug habit. While the vast majority of DTTO cases are likely to be heard in the magistrates courts, a significant number (perhaps as many as a quarter) of offenders on DTTOs are sentenced at Crown court. In view of the frequency and seriousness of offences committed by offenders in the target group, we anticipate that a significant proportion of those who are sentenced to DTTOs would otherwise have been sent to prison.
§ Mrs. Curtis-ThomasTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many drug treatment and testing orders were made in Crosby in 2003–04. [177937]
§ Paul GogginsAccording to data from the National Treatment Agency for Substance Misuse, 60 drug treatment and testing orders (DTTOs) were commenced within the area covered by Sefton Drug Action Team in 2003–04, of which five related to residents of Crosby.