Child Grooming Victims: Compensation Awards

Lord Mohammed of Tinsley Excerpts

Thursday 20th November 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Levitt (Lab)]

I thank the noble Baroness very much for that. Obviously, that is something that will be very useful to look into once the inquiry is set up.

[Lord Mohammed of Tinsley (LD)]

My Lords, the perpetrators of these crimes are men from all backgrounds, but many of them are not from upstanding backgrounds in the sense that some are involved in criminal activities such as drug dealing. So what action are His Majesty’s Government wanting to take against those convicted, looking at the Proceeds of Crime Act? These people were able to groom some of these young ladies—women—and girls because they had flash cars, et cetera. How do we ensure that those monsters have all the criminal assets from their ill-gotten gains taken away from them after conviction?

[Baroness Levitt (Lab)]

It is a very good point. Every judge at the end of a criminal trial has the ability to make a confiscation order, and these are being pursued with rigour because it is really important to ensure that criminals do not profit from that kind of illicit activity.

Prison Services: Insourcing

Lord Mohammed of Tinsley Excerpts

Wednesday 5th November 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Timpson (Lab)]

Across the English and Welsh prisons, we have 270 local contracts, with 88 education suppliers, including many voluntary organisations. I have regular meetings and conversations with Welsh colleagues as well. Even though I live just over the border in England, when I wake up in the morning and open my curtains, I can see a Welsh prison: HMP Berwyn.

[Lord Mohammed of Tinsley (LD)]

My Lords, I urge the Minister to draw on local government experiences around private provision and insourcing. I think what is really important is how the contract is drawn up and—more importantly—how that contract is managed, to make sure that we get the best outcomes for our prisoners, so they are rehabilitated when they come out of prison, and also so there is value for taxpayers.

[Lord Timpson (Lab)]

I completely agree. Having run a business for a long time, and paid a lot of tax, I am very aware that I want it spent wisely. Let me give one example: BT does the majority of our phone contracts in our prisons, for prisoners to make calls to family and friends. I managed to reduce the cost of those calls by 20% by working with BT, and I think holding suppliers to account is part of my job. Maybe they do not like to come and sit in my office, but they frequently do and I challenge them to ensure we get good value for money.