Offender Management Bill

My Lords, I congratulate the noble Baroness, Lady Gibson, not only on tabling the amendment but also on the way she presented her case. One of the things of interest to me throughout the debate is that, although we have talked about many things, we have not often concentrated on the probation staff themselves. In prisons, nothing will be right for prisoners unless things are right for staff,and the same goes for offenders in the hands of the Probation Service; unless things are right for the probation staff you will not get the quality of service out of them. One thing that has concerned me is that the Government created a National Probation Service, but it has not been in existence for very long before we find that its headquarters have been subsumed into NOMS and its director is now a subordinate of someone called the director of performance and improvement somewhere in NOMS headquarters. I am very glad that my noble friend Lady Howarth reminded us that we are talking about a National Probation Service. There should be national things for a national service. National collective bargaining must come in the whole collection of national things required for a national service with a national roleto play.