§ 2.42 p.m.
§ Lord BEAUMONT of WHITLEYMy 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 what steps are being taken to ensure that the work done in the Southend probation project for the rehabilitation of persistent sexual offenders is not wasted.
§ The MINISTER of STATE, HOME OFFICE (Lord Harris of Greenwich)My Lords, I understand that this small-scale experiment involved two offenders and was undertaken by a single officer over a six-month period. The method consisted partly of medical treatment with a libido-suppressing drug, and partly of group therapy. Conclusions could not be drawn from such a limited project, and 172 I am informed that when the officer moved to another area the responsible chief probation officer decided not to devote further effort to it.
§ Lord BEAUMONT of WHITLEYMy Lords, while thanking the Minister for that Answer, may I ask whether it is true that one of the main reasons for the project not being continued was not that it had proved in any way unsatisfactory—because, as the Minister says, there have not yet been sufficient results—but that there was a shortage of available staff? If worthwhile experiments like this—and I believe that this is worth while—are carried out, is it not worth the while of the Government to keep an eye on what is going on in order to ensure that such experiments can be fully followed up?
§ Lord HARRIS of GREENWICHMy Lords, resources have been made available to the Probation Service over the past two or three years for a number of projects of an experimental character, and, in particular, of course, for the extension of community service. However, so far as this project is concerned, I understand that it was not regarded as especially desirable to devote efforts to this particular task. The probation officers in the area had plenty of other things to do and the chief probation officer, of course, decides about these matters; they are not matters for the Home Office.
§ Lord LEATHERLANDMy Lords, is my noble friend aware that in France during the First World War there was a strong belief in the minds of the soldiers that their morning tea had been doped with bromide, the intention being to make them less attracted to the civilian population in the neighbourhood?