Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much additional funding, including through Project ADDER, has been provided to (a) combat drug crime and (b) support general policing in Blackpool in the last 12 months.

This Government’s 10-year Drug Strategy, underpinned by significant investment, sets out a whole system approach to reducing drug-related crime, harms and overall drug use. This includes £300m of dedicated investment over three years to drive work on tackling drug supply and county lines.

Through Project ADDER (Addiction, Diversion, Disruption, Enforcement and Recovery) we are trail-blazing a whole-system response to combatting drug misuse in 13 hardest hit areas across England and Wales. Project ADDER in Blackpool has provided the Lancashire Constabulary with over £650k of dedicated enforcement funding in 2021/22, with a further £575k provided for 2022/23. In total, Blackpool’s Project ADDER funding allocation will be £1,925,000 for 2022/23, which includes both health and enforcement funding.

Police funding for the Lancashire Constabulary more generally will be up to £343.7m in 2022/23, an increase of up to £17.9m when compared to 2021/22. Decisions on how to use this funding are an operational matter for Chief Constables.