Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill

Half of me supports the proposal that these clauses should not stand part and half of me is opposed. Half of me is for it because one of the aspects that needs very careful examination is the title. The title, ““Commissioner for Offender Management”” is utterly inappropriate to the post. What is described is not commissioning, nor is it anything to do with the management of offenders. Therefore, if you introduce a confusing title, you will confuse anyone who wonders what the post is actually all about. Therefore, I hope that the opportunity will be taken to drop this title and come up with something more appropriate such as ombudsman, which is what the job is. I remind the Minister that there is a long history about the requirement for this post to have statutory status. In 1979 when the report by Mr Justice May on the running of prisons was brought to Parliament, it was agreed that there should be a restoration of independent inspection, which had been suspended since 1877. That examination found that three aspects needed to be independently inspected: efficiency, propriety and the investigation of grievances. In the event, inspection of efficiency and propriety was accepted as part of the role of the Chief Inspector of Prisons, a post that was made statutory, as it has remained. In 1994, it was agreed that a separate post should be established for the investigation of grievances and the ombudsman was appointed. Ever since, successive ombudsmen have tried to have that post put on to a statutory basis in exactly the same way as the Chief Inspector of Prisons post is, because it came from the same stable. I am unhappy about the fact that we are having yet more delay, on top of 13 years’ delay since the appointment of the ombudsman, to the post being put on a statutory basis. I cannot see why there needs to be further delay. One aspect in what is described threatens the independence of the ombudsman, not just in his appointment but in the eyes of those people whose grievances he is investigating; the fact that he is seen to be too close to the Secretary of State affects his objectivity in their eyes. In his evidence to the committee in the other place, the ombudsman suggested that one way of getting over that problem would be to give him status similar to that enjoyed by the Independent Police Complaints Commission. I hope that, in conducting this review, the Minister will take account of that and not just go through the motions in looking at what currently exists in the Bill.