Organised Crime

(asked on )

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to tackle the (a) organised crime, (b) gang activity and (c) drug dealing across county operating across county boundaries.


Answered by
Victoria Atkins Portrait
Victoria Atkins
Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
This question was answered on 8th December 2017

The Home Office is leading a cross-Government programme of work to tackle the issue of county lines working with partners including the police and the National Crime Agency.

We are taking a range of actions including: raising awareness in key sectors of the threat of county lines; legislating to enable police to shut down the mobile phone lines used to facilitate drug deals (the Drug Dealing Telecommunication Restriction Orders); supporting local and strategic reviews to strengthen resilience in areas at risk of county lines; and working with the police and the Crown Prosecution Service to take full advantage of powers in the Modern Slavery Act when making charging decisions against county line gang members.

The Home Office provides support to tackle county lines in various ways; including Publication of guidance for frontline professionals on how to identify potential victims of county lines and appropriate referral routes; match funding reviews for local areas facing new gang related threats including county lines; funding a pilot support service for exploited young victims caught up in county lines drugs running between London and Kent; funding through the EGVE Local Projects Fund delivering legislation to provide police and the NCA with the power to go to court to seek closure of phone numbers involved in county lines drug dealing.

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