Offender Management Bill

moved Amendment No. 12: 12: Clause 4, page 4, line 19, at end insert ““; or (c) is for the provision of assistance to the Parole Board and the Secretary of State in the early release and recall of prisoners.”” The noble Baroness said: My Lords, this amendment is similar to one that I, along with my noble friend Lady Turner, submitted in Committee. It aims to keep what I believe is a vital public protection function in the public sector and so prevent the conflict of interest which, in part, led to the Government listing court work as a restricted provision. The Probation Service does an excellent job of providing professional advice to the Parole Board which is impartial, accurate, reliable and skilled. It undoubtedly assists the board in making its decisions about releasing prisoners. If those are honeyed words, so be it, because I believe them. The information is provided in writing and also verbally, and a risk assessment is offered where that is deemed appropriate. If this important function were to be commissioned, there could be an immediate conflict of interest. That is what my amendment is about. It is not that I dislike the voluntary sector. Before I came to this House, I had responsibility in my union for many thousands of members who worked in what we then called the non-profit sector, so I have knowledge of them and their work and a tremendous amount of respect for them. However, I do worry about a conflict of interest. An example I gave in Committee was that, if a writer were to be employed by a company with a commercial interest in the outcome—for example, on tagging or on private jails—that would affect the ability of the Parole Board to carry out its functions.I am not the only one who has fears. In 2005, in evidence to the Home Affairs Committee, a representative of the judiciary warned that they could not be involved in a body such as a probation board if competition were introduced into services for the courts and therefore, surely, into the Prison Board’s decisions as well. As my noble friend Lord Judd said when we debated this in Committee, it is very important if we are co-operating with others, as this Bill allows—indeed, wants us to do—outside the formal public service, to remember what the priorities are. Surely, one priority is to maintain what works well at the moment and not to detract from it because that would be detrimental to everyone, especially offenders. Although my noble friend the Minister has assured the House that there are no immediate plans to open up this area of work to competition, I and the National Association of Probation Officers believe that it would be better to ensure that this does not happen in the future either. I beg to move.