Local Probation Boards (Appointment and Miscellaneous Provisions) (Amendment) Regulations 2006

My Lords, if a week is a long time in politics, a fortnight can prove to be an eternity. Only a fortnight ago, I expressed my unreserved thanks to the Minister, who sadly is not in her place today, to which she characteristically and generously responded, for saving that endangered species—the magistrate—from exclusion from police authorities. How quickly time passes. Now I find myself adding my voice to echo the concerns, which were soably detailed by the noble Baroness, Lady Anelay of St Johns, and the noble Lord, Lord Avebury, about the effect of these new regulations, again in so far as they will apply to the magistracy. I should declare that the Magistrates’ Association is of course against them. Although I totally absolve the Minister from what I now have to say, the probation service has been the whipping boy of governments of whatever colour over recent years. I recall the theory prevalent in some quarters not so long ago that shortages in the probation service could easily be filled by recruiting ex-warrant officers and the like from the Armed Forces, because it was a task to which they were well suited because of their experiences there. Next came the wheeze—I think that that is the right word—to deny probation officers the chance to study for a degree because such high aspirations were deemed to be unnecessary for such a humble calling. Indeed, I remember being part of a delegation to the then Home Secretary headed by a distinguished former head of the Home Office, my noble friend Lord Allen of Abbeydale, who is sadly unable to be here today, where we managed to achieve a smart turnabout in government policy on this issue. I apologise for a slightly extended preface, but the remainder of my remarks will be brief. I am sure that the Minister would rightly affirm that he has nothing but praise for the laudable achievements of the probation service. From my experience as a magistrate for 27 years, I can say only that I valued their contribution to my work immensely and can think of only a minuscule number of times when I disagreed with what they had to say. However, in my view these proposals will be damaging to that capability and will be unlikely to succeed in their objective of securing seamless offender management and disposal. There is also much evidence that the consultation process—as I regret is so often the case nowadays—has been inadequate. It is also not entirely clear on what evidence the various assumptions in the original Home Office paper were made. The removal of magistrates and local government representatives from the boards some two years ahead of the establishment of the trusts is not a fully thought-out initiative, particularly in view of the appointment of so many new probation board chairs in the new year. Surely what the newcomers will want as they settle in will be know-how and experience to guide them through areas with which they may well be unfamiliar. Casting all that expertise aside at this time and in what I can only call such a sneaky way, will be counterproductive in the end and make this very much more difficult. I am also concerned that what is now an integrated system will be split into a number of unconnected operations. To cite an example, nowadays a sentence can contain several different requirements such as a curfew, supervision and perhaps even a course of treatment for anger management. Is it the case that each of these separate but closely linked requirements could become the responsibility of three separate enforcement bodies in the future? If so, there is more than an even chance of bureaucratic muddle and confusion lying ahead. Finally, I have to say that the additional costs involved in these ill-advised changes would be far better deployed at the coalface where they are very much needed, and would present a far better chance for securing the reduction in reoffending targets which this Government very properly seek, but I fear will not get with these proposals.