§ Lord Waddingtonasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will reconsider the proposal that voluntary organisations should be charged a fee for every request for a search to establish whether an applicant for a post has a criminal record. [HL2342]
§ Lord Williams of MostynWe considered very carefully whether there was any way in which free checks could be provided for volunteers. Whilst we acknowledge the valuable contribution volunteers make, we have concluded that it will not be practicable to provide any free checks from the Criminal Records Bureau for volunteers or for any other groups. We realise that this is unwelcome news but providing free checks would prove an unsustainable burden on the public purse and might increase demand for certificates from the bureau to an uncontrollable extent. In addition, we do not consider it would be fair to allow volunteers to have free certificates when there are other equally deserving groups such as the unemployed or the disabled. The cost of the fees for certificates from the bureau will be kept to the minimum necessary to recoup costs.