Ms Paula Hilman:

The prevent strategy is very important and the PSNI takes an approach with the two strategies of prevent and pursue running parallel to each other rather than looking at them in isolation. As part of the prevent strategy, we have identified two types of offending, that is, online and situational domestic offending. For the online prevent strategy, the PSNI tries to work collectively with the National Crime Agency to engage with service providers and with the education programmes for young people, parents and society about how to stay safe online.

They are very important and there are things we are doing alongside that. We have identified among ourselves that the pursue strategy is about having the tools and the toolkit but applying those in a very risk assessed, graduated response.

Although some of the incidents that we have talked about are not frequently used by us, when we do use them it is with legal advice and through risk assessment. Having that tool to help keep young people safe is very important. As we have outlined in the presentation, we find that they work well with us in the North.

On research on reoffending, the Department of Justice in the North produced a research document in August this year. I think we have sent it to the committee as part of our documents but I will double-check that. That research gives evidence about reoffending.