§ Lord Harris of Greenwichasked Her Majesty's Government:
What policy they adopt when applicants for Home Office sponsorship for the Certificate of Qualification in Social Work have been convicted of imprisonable offences, and whether all such cases are referred to Ministers.
§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Home Office (Lord Elton)Applicants for Home Office sponsorships as probation students are considered on their individual merits. Where there had been a previous conviction, all the relevant circumstances would be taken into account but it would not be an automatic bar to acceptance, though the suitability of an applicant who had a serious or recent conviction would obviously be very much in question. The way in which such cases are considered in the Home Office depends on the circumstances of each individual case.