Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to New support for victims of county lines exploitation, published on 24 September 2022, how much funding will be allocated to support services in London, for each of the next three years.

We are determined to crack down on county lines gangs and that is why, through the ten-year Drugs Strategy, we are investing up to £145m over three years in our successful County Lines Programme.

As part of that, in order to support those exploited, this financial year we are awarding not-for-profit organisation Catch22 up to £1.035m to deliver a specialist support service in London, the West Midlands, Merseyside and Greater Manchester. These are the four biggest exporting areas for county lines activity, aligning with the wider investment in police forces as part of the County Lines Programme.

We are awarding up to £1.5m in both financial years 2023/24 and 2024/25. Separate allocations have not been made by area.

As part of the package of support, funding will also be allocated to continue the delivery of the national confidential and anonymous helpline ‘SafeCall’, delivered across England and Wales by Missing People – including bespoke support for parents and carers.