Society: Cost of youth crime in Scotland

Youth crime in Scotland costs at least pounds 730m a year, according to a report published yesterday by The Prince's Trust.

Around 350,000 crimes, almost 40 per cent of all those recorded north of the border, are committed by people under the age of 20, the survey by consultancy firm Coopers & Lybrand discovered. "This is a huge cost to Scotland and we believe that by acting on just some of the recommendations in the report that real savings and benefits can be achieved," said Arwyn Thomas, director of Prince's Trust-Action. The report's recommendations, aimed at the Scottish Office, police forces and councils, include: a recognition that effective youth work can prevent crime; a programme of youth work with "explicit" crime prevention objectives; police involvement in evaluating the effectiveness of local youth projects; and consideration of the impact of council policies on young people.