Drugs Bill
2:30 pm
Ms Caroline Flint (Parliamentary Under-Secretary (reducing organised and international crime, anti drugs co-ordination and international and European issues), Home Office; Don Valley, Labour)
Let me be clear. We have already discussed this morning how there are aggravated factors if dealers are targeting vulnerable people, which include all those under 18. The clause focuses specifically on how a school is used by young people. That is the added plus to which we are trying to attend. While defining how the aggravating factor is to be used, it is appropriate to have a sense of the risks that are posed to young people and children. That could vary from one area to another. I tried to explain that in more detail a little earlier.
If someone is supplying drugs to another adult and is doing so in an area around a school where young people are on their way to school or are dropping into the cafe on the way to school, that may become known through surveillance and other means. The police often carry out operations to target dealers and to obtain evidence to convict them. They may witness this, and we think that the aggravating factor should apply here. There might be other aggravating factors, too.
If, however, someone is involved in dealing at a time when it is felt that the risk to young people was not a factor, it would probably be wrong for the aggravating factor to apply. That does not mean that the person will not be dealt with because the offence is dealing, for which they will be arrested. I hope that there would be evidence to support that in court. The judges have the discretion to consider a number of different circumstances in relation to the offence when they decide on the sentencing, as they do in other matters. This is one matter on which we think that where appropriate it should not be left to discretion but should be something that they should consider as a matter of procedure.