Public Protection

The Home Secretary’s concept of a violent offender order may well have merit—we will look at the detail when the legislation is published—but may I make a wider point? Persons like myself who practise in the criminal courts, often deal with violent offenders, and have to consider whether they have a propensity to commit future violence, know that one of the problems is that they are often unemployable because they are addicted to drink or drugs or lack employment potential by reason of poor education or lack of relevant skills. Does the right hon. Gentleman agree that the Prison Service must place yet greater weight on tackling addiction of various kinds and on providing education and employment skills, and that his violent offender orders should be shaped in such a way as to enable that to continue after release from prison?