Schedule 2
Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Bill [Lords]
12:45 pm
Maria Miller (Shadow Minister (Education), Education; Basingstoke, Conservative)
The amendments in my name and those of my hon. Friends relate to schedule 2 and to scrutiny of the Secretary of State’s referrals to the IBB. I should be interested in the Minister’s response because the amendments also include provision for the IBB’s decision-making process to be defined in a code of practice. The issue was discussed in the other place, but given the importance of having clarity and transparency in these matters, it is important that we continue that debate in Committee.
The amendments are all about introducing greater transparency into the IBB’s decision-making process, which is vital if there is to be confidence in the system. The amendments are tabled in the same spirit as those tabled in the other place. They are probing amendments, which are meant to clarify the IBB’s processes and, I hope, thereby strengthen the system that the IBB puts in place.
Amendments Nos. 121 and 122 would ensure that referrals made by the Secretary of State were subject to the same scrutiny as referrals made by other individuals. Lord Adonis, the Minister in the other place, said that there would be little point in asking the IBB to consider whether someone referred to it for raping a 13-year-old girl should be barred. That is of course true, but there should be a process or safeguard to ensure that Secretary of State referrals are free from political interference or expediency. As the Minister has said and as the former Secretary of State, the right hon. Member for Bolton, West (Ruth Kelly), has attested, the point of the new scheme is to divorce the vetting and barring of individuals from the political process. The power of referral and the IBB’s status as a non-departmental public body, which we have discussed, will put at arm’s length Ministers’ control, but not remove it. Will the Minister reassure me on that matter?
Amendments Nos. 120 and 123 would establish a code of practice for the IBB. It is vital that the decision-making process for the new body be clearly spelt out and transparent to those who will be affected. I hope that that will ensure that the system is robust and has the full support of all those who need to support it if it is to be successful.