§ Mr. OatenTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to reduce the amount of paperwork for volunteers completing forms required by the Criminal Records Bureau. [61766]
§ Hilary Benn[holding answer 17 June 2002]In order to ensure that Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) Disclosure Applications are processed accurately and in the interests of public safety 42 questions are asked of applicants. This is the case for all applicants, whether their positions are voluntary or paid.
There are no plans to reduce the amount of information requested for volunteers completing forms required by the CRB to process disclosure applications.
The CRB offers two application channels to request a disclosure, the telephone application line and the paper application form route. A third option is planned to be 182W introduced later this year, when applicants will be able to apply via the CRB website. These measures have all been put in place to help keep the amount of paper work to a minimum.