Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to reduce the delays in the processing of Disclosure and Barring service checks.

Protecting the public is a priority for this Government and it is important that checks undertaken are thorough. I maintain a close interest in disclosure turnaround times and receive monthly reports from the Disclosure and Barring Service.

The Disclosure and Barring Service is reliant on police forces completing their checks in a timely manner. If police force performance falls below the agreed standard, the DBS will work with the force concerned to support a recovery plan.