§ 2.43 p.m.
Lord INGLEWOODMy Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.
The Question was as follows:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will give the date of the first irregularities listed in the Osmond Report on the conduct of the late chief constable of Lancashire, and the date of the first effective action by the Lancashire police authority in regard thereto.
§ The MINISTER of STATE, HOME OFFICE (Lord Harris of Greenwich)My Lords, so long as there was the possibility of an appeal by Mr. Parr, the former chief constable of Lancashire, against the decision of the police authority to dismiss him, it would not have been proper for my right honourable friend to seek detailed information on the allegations which were covered in Sir Douglas Osmond's report to the authority. Now that Mr. Parr has withdrawn his appeal, the authority has, at our request, supplied us with a copy of the report and has promised to supply a full account of the action taken by it in relation to the allegations covered in the report. When we have had a chance to consider these documents, I will write to the noble Lord.
Lord INGLEWOODMy Lords, while I thank the noble Lord for that reply, may I ask him whether he is aware that by this Question I am in no way criticising the police or former chief constable, who has left the service? I am inquiring about the way that the police authority carried out their responsibilities. Can the noble Lord give me any idea when he may be able to give the House more information if I put down a Question?
§ Lord HARRIS of GREENWICHNo, my Lords, I cannot at the moment give any indication of a date when we shall have concluded our consideration of this matter. The situation is that, now that the former chief constable has withdrawn his appeal, it is proper for us to consider the report submitted by Sir Douglas Osmond to the authority. Previously it would not have been right for us to examine that report because Mr. Parr 786 might have exercised his right of appeal. This is a substantial document. It has now been received in the Home Office, and officials are now preparing an analysis of the document which will be considered by my right honourable friend and myself.
Lord INGLEWOODMy Lords, may I ask the noble Lord whether his Department noticed that the whole document was published in the Lancashire Evening Post on 25th February?
§ Lord HARRIS of GREENWICHMy Lords, I think it right to say that what purported to be extracts from the report were in fact published in a Lancashire evening newspaper.
§ Lord LEE of NEWTONMy Lords, is my noble friend aware that there is a certain disquiet in Lancashire about this issue, and would he agree that perhaps a little further investigation would not be amiss?
§ Lord HARRIS of GREENWICHMy Lords, I am aware of the anxieties that have been expressed in Lancashire and echoed by my noble friend Lord Lee of Newton. This has been a very sombre episode, in which a fine police force has seen its chief constable dismissed. There are, undoubtedly, a number of other allegations which have been made—allegations in no way connected with Sir Douglas Osmond's report—which are at the moment subject to investigation. This is a serious matter. It is regarded as such by my right honourable friend and myself. We will report to the House as soon as there is something to report.