Clause 9 - Information databases
Children Bill [Lords]
2:30 pm
Mr Roger Williams (Shadow Minister (Rural Affairs), Environment, Food & Rural Affairs; Brecon and Radnorshire, Liberal Democrat)
I should like to speak to amendment No. 219 in my name and that of my hon. Friend the Member for Mid-Dorset and North Poole (Mrs. Brooke). The Government seem determined to include any cause for concern in the Bill. The amendment probes what regulations the Minister sees as appropriate to safeguard children and young people whose information is recorded on the database and may be passed on to another person. Under the amendment, a child or young person would have the information that was being disclosed, so that they could check that it was accurate and appropriate. The amendment goes on to say that the child should be informed in the first place and, if they are not mature enough, the parent, guardian or anyone else with parental responsibility should have the opportunity to check the information.
It seems to me that if ''cause for concern'' is not well defined, there will be too little information on the database to be of any use. Alternatively, there will be so much that people have no confidence in it. However, confidence that the database is appropriate, accurate and instrumental in looking after the well-being and welfare of children is important for the professionals using it, so it is not appropriate to include any cause for concern on the database.