New Clause 6
Offender Management Bill
12:15 pm
James Brokenshire (Shadow Minister (Homeland Security), Home Affairs; Hornchurch, Conservative)
The hon. Gentleman rightly touches on the important and sensitive issue of how best we can protect children from sex offenders. I, too, was struck by the briefing materials produced by a number of children’s charities stating their thinking on that point and on how to ensure that the offenders who might put children at risk are properly monitored, scrutinised and assessed on a continuing basis so that potential threats are examined. The hon. Gentleman’s new clauses reflect language that appeared previously in a Bill that did not find its way on to the statute book. It is well worth asking how the Government’s thinking has moved on since that then and what it currently is. I know that the Minister takes a particular interest in the matter.
The Home Office has received information on the pilot study on the use of polygraph information, and I note that Professor Don Grubin’s studyconcluded that 94 per cent. of probation staff involved found the information gained helpful. However, that is only a pilot study, and the information and results appear to be recent. Further debate, analysis and review will therefore be required to assess their import and the likely impact of a wider roll-out of any such scheme. I certainly welcome the debate that the new clauses offer, and I shall listen with great interest to how the Government intend to proceed how they believe children and other vulnerable members of our community can best be protected.