HC Deb 19 April 2004 vol 420 cc102-4W
Mr. Drew

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many meetings he and his officials have held with private sector prison operating companies regarding the new National Offender Management Service(a) prior to the publication of and (b) since the publication of "Reducing Crime—Changing Lives". [163939]

Paul Goggins

Home Office officials meet regularly with the operators of the contracted prisons at operational and senior management level, both individually and as a group. Progress with the Review of Correctional Services, and subsequently the Government's proposals set out in "Reducing Crime—Changing Lives", have been discussed at a number of these meetings. I met informally with senior directors from the four companies concerned on 23 March and was interested to hear their views on how they might help to deliver better outcomes for offenders and reduced re-offending.

Mr. Drew

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Chief Executive of the National Offender Management Service and his implementation team will be in a position to submit a full report regarding its funding requirements up to 2007–08 for the 2004 spending review. [163941]

Paul Goggins

The funding requirements for the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) up to 2007–08 will be set out as part of the Home Office Spending Review 2004 proposal. The NOMS implementation team has been closely involved in developing a full supporting analysis of those requirements.

Mr. Drew

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Prison Service Pay Review Body will continue to set rates of pay for the staff currently within its remit under the National Offender Management Service. [163986]

Paul Goggins

There are no immediate plans to alter the position of the Prison Service Pay Review Body, but terms and conditions for National Offender Management Service staff will be considered as part of the transition process.

Mr. Gerrard

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the effect of the creation of the National Offender Management Service upon the size of the prison population over the next five years. [160898]

Paul Goggins

By 2009, as a result of the National Offender Management Reforms and other measures, the intention is that prison population should match prison capacity and remain at a figure of less than 80,000. The population may increase in the intervening period.

Mr. Drew

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what responses he has received to the consultation on the setting up of the National Offender Management Service. [162817]

Paul Goggins

As of 26 March 2004 the Home Office has received 262 responses to the proposals in 'Reducing Crime—Changing Lives'. The National Offender Management Service Implementation Team is currently analysing the responses, which will inform the process of implementation.

Mr. David Drew

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what discussions he has had with(a) the Association of Chief Police Officers, (b) the NHS, (c) local authorities and (d) the Local Government Association on the setting up of the National Offender Management Service. [162818]

Paul Goggins

We are working closely with a range of organisations on the implementation of the National Offender Management Service. The implementation team has already held initial discussions with the Department of Health and the Local Government Association and will continue to discuss NOMS with all key stakeholders.

Dr. Vis

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether Patrick Carter received advice from accountancy firms in preparing his report on managing offenders. [162842]

Paul Goggins

I understand that the team based in the Cabinet Office, who conducted the independent review of correctional services led by Patrick Carter, sought expertise from a range of sources, including commissioning one piece of work from external consultants.

Miss McIntosh

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will place in the Library the business case for the introduction of the National Offender Management Service.[163023]

Paul Goggins

We have already published Patrick Carter's independent report "Managing Offenders—Reducing Crime", which sets out the case for a National Offender Management Service, and the Government's response "Reducing crime—Changing Lives" which accepts that case. A separate business case for the National Offender Management Service is currently being prepared.

Miss McIntosh

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what factors were taken into account when formulating the timetable for the introduction of the National Offender Management Service. [163024]

Paul Goggins

The formation of the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) is a key part of the Government's public sector reform programme. It will make a substantial contribution to reducing reoffending and overall levels of crime. We aim to achieve these benefits as quickly as possible and will formally launch NOMS on 1 June. Full implementation will continue over several years under the direction of the NOMS Board.

Miss McIntosh

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether there will be a Gateway Review during the development of the National Offender Management Service. [163025]

Paul Goggins

A Gateway Review process will be carried out during the implementation of the National Offender Management Service.

Miss McIntosh

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what reasons there was no three month consultation period prior to the announcement of plans to introduce the National Offender Management Service. [163026]

Paul Goggins

The Government published its proposals for the reform of correctional services in its paper Reducing Crime—Changes Lives. In that paper the Home Secretary set out the initial views of the Government to Patrick Carter's Report and sought the views of stakeholders on a number of issues.

The reform of correctional services and the creation of the National Offender Management Service is a significant undertaking. There is no suggestion that the entire reform will be carried out after a single consultation exercise. The questions for stakeholders posed in Reducing Crimes—Changing Lives represents the start of a consultation process. I have already undertaken to ensure that consultation is ongoing with staff and stakeholders over the period of up to five years that we expect the full roll out of the new service to take.

Miss McIntosh

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the impact the National Offender Management Service is likely to have on cooperation between the prison and probation services. [163028]

Paul Goggins

The government recognises the progress made in the development of joint working between the prison and probation services. But, as Patrick Carter's review of Correctional Services makes clear there are still gaps in the service through which offenders can fall back into crime. The creation of the National Offender Management Service, joining the two services together, will provide a seamless, more effective service with a clear remit to reduce re-offending.

Miss McIntosh

To Ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the impact of the creation of the National Offender Management Service en the employment status of staff; and what steps his Department has taken to inform staff of proposed changes. [163109]

Paul Goggins

The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) implementation team will work closely with staff and unions to get the structure of NOMS right. Assessments arc being made on changes to staff numbers, terms of sere ice and work locations. Staff are being kept updated of developments with regular newsletters and there will be full consultation on any proposed changes to the employment status of staff.