Councillor James Alexander, leader of the Labour-run City of York Council, said the project was key to securing the city's economic future.

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The drive is part of Operation Enterprise, a project run by Norfolk Constabulary, Norwich City Centre Management Team and Norfolk Drugs and Alcohol Action Team.

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The Newcastle pilot - run by Newcastle University and the city council - is part of a project involving six other European cities in France, Denmark, The Netherlands, Greece, Italy and Spain.

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The cash will fund a five-year project to help poor children in the city, which will be run by the organisation Plan.

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In this case, a collaboration between the Shanghai City Government (which provides funding) and an aggregation of several NGO support organizations (which actually run the project), it represents the first initiative of its type in China.

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