The discussion notes that delays can encourage recidivism by those on bail and promote detention of young people, who learn new attitudes and skills from people more criminally sophisticated. Delays may also weaken family and community ties, making offending more likely in the longer terms. Delays can also undermine the effectiveness of sentencing as an immediate deterrent. The principles supported by the interagency committee on the Coordinated Computerization of the Criminal Justice System appears to be an appropriate framework. In addition, recommended actions should include an interagency agreement to improve communication and information availability to provide faster and more effective decisionmaking; routine audits of pre- court, pretrial, and pre-sentencing procedures to determine possible time savings; and joint guidelines from the Department of Health and the Home Office regarding delays. Additional recommendations, footnotes, and list of members of the Young Offenders Committee