Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill

We are most sympathetic to the animating theme which lies behind these amendments, although we have one or two hesitations about particular aspects of the detail. As I think that we have all said in the past two days, custody is known to be one of the least effective and most harmful of criminal justice disposals for children, with eight out of 10 reoffending within two years of release. I note that the Minister in another place, David Hanson, did not object to the concept of custody thresholds, which is not surprising. The Youth Justice Board’s publication, entitled, Strategy for the Secure Estate for Children and Young People, of November 2004, said: "““The YJB expects legislative changes that are due soon to bring greater clarity for courts about the [children’s] custody threshold””." As Members of the Committee are well aware, YJB policy documents are cleared by Ministers and thus, effectively, become government policy. The aim of a custody threshold for children should be to ensure that children are only ever locked up as a last resort, principally for public protection. Moreover, a reduction in the number of children in custody would release considerable resources for improved prevention and rehabilitation where it can be most effective, as noted by the Audit Commission, the Public Accounts Committee and many other official bodies.