Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to prevent (a) new county lines from starting up and (b) previous lines being resurrected by new prison leavers.

Since 2019 we have invested over £65m to tackle county lines and drug supply. Through our county lines programme we have surged our activity against these ruthless gangs. This has already resulted in more than 1,100 lines closed, over 6,300 arrests, and more than 1,900 vulnerable adults and children safeguarded.

The police have a range of orders available to respond to county lines activity, including Drug Dealing Telecommunications Restrictions Orders (DDTROs). Through our County Lines programme the National County Lines Coordination Centre has established a dedicated orders team to promote and maximise the use of civil orders to tackle county lines, with a particular focus on DDTROs.

We are also working collaboratively with HMPPS to ensure there is a co-ordinated and robust response to disrupt county lines, as well as safeguarding vulnerable individuals from being involved in this offending.