Mr Iain Wright (Hartlepool) (Lab)

- Hansard -

I rise to present a petition initiated by the Hartlepool probation service, which is part of the Durham and Tees Valley Probation Trust, and I understand that every single officer, manager and administrator working in the Hartlepool office has agreed with, and signed, the petition.

The petition states:

The Petition of a resident of the UK,

Declares that the Petitioner opposes the Government’s plan to abolish the Probation Service in its current form and to privatise up to 70% of work currently undertaken by it. The Petitioners believe that those convicted by a Criminal Court should be supervised by those employed by a publicly accountable Probation Service such as currently exists; further that the Petitioner opposes the Government’s plan to abolish the 35 public sector Probation Trusts replacing them with one Probation Service that only supervises those deemed to be of a high risk of harm to the public. It is envisaged under the current plan, 70% of probation’s work will be subject to a competitive process which excludes the Probation Service. The Petitioner believes that such a plan is “high risk” in that it could place the public at a greater risk of harm.

The Petitioner therefore requests that the House of Commons urges the Government to stop the planned changes to the Probation Service.

And the Petitioners remain, etc.

[P001232]