HOME SECRETARY Jack Straw today promised a combination of national and local measures to drive down Lancashire's sky-high rate of drug-related crime - the worst in the country.

He told the Evening Telegraph that he had been in discussions with local police chiefs in a bid to tackle to problem.

The Blackburn MP said he was also determined to deal with the drugs menace on a national scale as Ribble Valley Tory Nigel Evans demanded he deliver on his government's manifesto promises to crackdown on the problem.

Mr Straw was reacting to the call from Lancashire's coroners for action to cut down the number of drug deaths and to deal with the explosion of crime related to the narcotics trade.

They highlighted figures produced by Mr Straw in Opposition at last year's Labour Party Conference which showed that property stolen by heroin abusers in the county alone cost £147 per household in 1995 - the highest figure in the country.

Today the Home Secretary told the Evening Telegraph:"I recognise that there is major problem with drugs and drug related crime both nationally and in Lancashire.

"I am aware that in the county many burglaries, robberies., thefts and car crimes are committed by drug addicts.

"The Government is determined to do all it can to combat the drugs trade and the crime and misery it causes. "We are introducing a new drug treatment and testing order for those addicts on community sentences, so we can ensure that they are coming off drugs as they claim in the Crime and Disorder Bill.

"Both in Government and in Opposition, I have discussed the problem at length with the police in Lancashire, in whom I have great trust.

"I and they are determined to do all we can to tackle the problem of drug-related property crime and the drug trade in general.

"As a Lancashire MP, I am very aware of the problem and very concerned to make sure that it is effectively dealt with."

Ribble Valley Tory MP Nigel Evans, said: "The Labour Party came into government saying it was going to be tough on drugs and drug crimes.

"There is a major problem in Lancashire and as both Home Secretary and a county MP, it is now up to Mr Straw to deliver on his promises."

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