Sussex has the second worst record in England for handing down swift justice to young offenders, new figures reveal.

Last year, the average time between young offenders being arrested and sentenced was 96 days.

Only London had a worse record with the national average standing at 76 days.

Sussex is facing a race against time to meet the Government's target of reducing the figure to 71 days or below by next month.

The target was a key pledge of Labour's General Election victory in 1997 - with ministers stating the benchmark would be reached within five years.

The performance of court staff and police in Sussex got worse last year after showing signs of improvement.

In 1998, it was taking 163 days to sentence young offenders. This was reduced to 144 days in 1999 and 84 days in 2000. But last year the figure increased again.

However, the county's performance in the last quarter of 2001 did show signs for optimism, according to new figures released by the Lord Chancellor's department.

Between October and December last year, the average time for a young offender to be sentenced was 93 days.

The Home Office has repeatedly stated fast-track justice would bring real benefits to the public.

Home Office minister Beverley Hughes said: "By reducing the time taken to bring young offenders to justice, the chances of them reoffending are reduced and the effectiveness of the system as a whole is increased.

"Young offenders are brought to justice more quickly and victims and local people can have confidence that the system delivers results."