Asked by: Allison Gardner (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help tackle car thefts in (a) Stoke-on-Trent South constituency and (b) other constituencies.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
This Government is determined to drive down vehicle crime and we are closely working with the automotive industry and police to ensure our response to vehicle crime is as strong as it can be.
We continue to work with the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead for vehicle crime, through the National Vehicle Crime Working Group, to take forward a programme of work to drive down vehicle crime. We are focusing on prevention and deterrence of theft of and from vehicles; this includes training police officers on the methods used to steal vehicles, encouraging vehicle owners to secure their vehicles, and working with industry to address vulnerabilities in vehicles.
The Home Office collects and publishes information on the number of ‘Aggravated vehicle taking’ and ‘Theft or unauthorised taking of motor vehicle’ offences recorded by the police in England and Wales on a quarterly basis. This information is available at the Police Force Area and Community Safety Partnership area level including ‘Stoke-on-Trent Community Safety Partnership Area’. Information at the constituency level is not held centrally.
Data for year ending March 2024 shows there were 714 ‘Aggravated vehicle taking’ and ‘Theft or unauthorised taking of motor vehicle’ offences recorded by Stoke-on-Trent Community Partnership Area, a rise of 1% compared with the previous year. There was a small fall (1%) across England and Wales for the same period.
Asked by: Allison Gardner (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to tackle anti-social behaviour in Stoke-on-Trent South constituency.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government recognises that effective multi-agency working is crucial to reducing anti-social behaviour and ensuring safer communities. We will continue to work with police, local authorities and the voluntary sector to identify and share best practice.
Tackling anti-social behaviour is a top priority for this Government, and a key part of our Safer Streets Mission. We will put thousands of neighbourhood police and community support officers into local communities and crack down on those causing havoc on our high streets by introducing tougher powers including new Respect Orders to tackle repeat offending.
Asked by: Allison Gardner (Labour - Stoke-on-Trent South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what progress the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs have made on the review into synthetic cathinones.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drug’s review on synthetic cathinones is scheduled for publication by December 2024.