Brooke Challenges Home Secretary on Child Sex Offenders

12.39.29pm GMT Thu 11th Jan 2007

Local MP, Annette Brooke, questioned Home Secretary John Reid yesterday, following revelations that the Government has failed to register hundreds of British offenders convicted abroad.

Annette, Lib Dem Spokesperson for Children, Young People and Families, challenged the Home Secretary to urgently reassure the British public that no convicted child sex offenders are working with children.

Annette Brooke said:

"It is clearly possible that convicted child sex offenders are working with children, and I am concerned that so little is known about the situation because of Home Office blunders.

"Now we hear that Ministers knew about this failure three months ago. I really must question whether this Government is committed to protecting children and vulnerable people."

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

House of Commons

Hansard

Official Report

10 Jan 2007 : Column 297

Annette Brooke (Mid-Dorset and North Poole) (LD): Does the Home Secretary agree that there is an urgent need to reassure the public that convicted child sex offenders are not working with children at present? Is he in a position to make a statement in the very near future on the child sex offenders who have been identified already-I believe that there are 29 of them-and what process he will follow regarding others who may be revealed?

John Reid: The hon. Lady has a long-standing interest in this and served on a Committee that considered a Bill concerned with these matters. She is absolutely right. That was why I met this morning not only the police and officials, but the Criminal Records Bureau. I have asked the bureau to run through all the information that has now been passed to it. I have asked for the 280 names to be given to the bureau and for it to go through its computer files in the next three days. By the end of the week, I hope that I will be in a position to give such confirmation, or to be able to identify anyone about whom an inquiry was made before information was received from the national computer. If there is someone in such a position who has been appointed, I will tackle that problem when we discover it.

Link to full debate: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200607/cmhansrd/cm070110/debtext/70110-0003.htm#07011053000004