To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the effectiveness of police local drugs units in bringing to court hard drugs dealers. The police have a key role in the Government's anti-drugs strategy working with other enforcement agencies to stifle the availability of illegal drugs on our streets. The drug problem will not be the same in each force area, and it is an operational matter for each Chief Officer of Police to decide the most effective way to tackle drug dealing in his or her force area. It is for the Crown Prosecution Service to decide whether to prosecute those charged with an offence. A target for 1999-2000 is to increase by 10 per cent.
Detailed information is given in the table.
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the current status of those passengers on the recently hijacked Afghan airliner who sought asylum. I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to my hon.