News story

Preferred candidate for the role of His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Probation

The Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor confirmed today (4 December 2023) that the preferred candidate for the role of HMCIP is Martin Jones.

This was published under the 2022 to 2024 Sunak Conservative government

His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Probation

His Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Probation (HMCIP) is the independent inspector of probation and youth offending services in England and Wales. The Inspectorate offers independent scrutiny of the quality of work undertaken with individual offenders to seek to improve outcomes for individuals and communities.

Martin Jones has been selected as the preferred candidate for the role of HMCIP following a rigorous assessment process conducted in accordance with the Governance Code on Public Appointments.

The role is subject to pre-appointment hearing by the Justice Select Committee. Pre-appointment scrutiny is an important part of the appointment process for some of the most significant public appointments made by Ministers. It is designed to provide an added level of scrutiny to the appointment process. Pre-appointment hearings are held in public and allow a Select Committee to take evidence before a candidate is appointed. Ministers consider the Committee’s views before deciding whether to proceed with the appointment.

Biography

Mr Jones has been the Chief Executive of the Parole Board since 2015. Prior to that he served as Deputy Director for Sentencing Policy from 2012-2015 and as Head of Crime for Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service from 2008-2011.

Updates to this page

Published 5 December 2023