Policy paper

Terms of Reference

Published 20 October 2020

This was published under the 2019 to 2022 Johnson Conservative government

Applies to England and Wales

In our general election manifesto in 2019, the government undertook to conduct a root and branch review of the parole system.

Since then the criminal justice system, and the country as a whole, has had to deal with the coronavirus pandemic.

The government is grateful for the tremendous effort made by the Parole Board, Her Majesty’s Prison & Probation Service and prisoners’ legal representatives to hold as many hearings as possible using video or telephone conferencing and to keep the parole system operating during a very challenging period.

The government considers that now is the right time to launch this review because it has recently published its Sentencing White Paper. This enables the review of the parole system to be conducted in the context of the proposed measures for reform of the sentencing and release framework for serious and dangerous offenders.

The Root and Branch review will focus on the following 4 areas:

1.An evaluation of the parole reforms to date:

• considering the overall performance of the parole process and identifying whether any further measures would help to improve the timeliness and efficiency of the process
• the response to Covid-19 and its implications on the way parole reviews may be conducted in the future
• examining the effectiveness of the reconsideration mechanism and whether there is a case for further reform of that process
• identifying any additional legislative or Rule changes that would further improve the parole process including whether the current release test continues to be appropriate

2.The constitution and status of the Parole Board:

• examining whether the Parole Board should remain a non-departmental public body or should be made more visibly independent from the Ministry of Justice
• whether possible alternatives, such as creating a new type of public protection tribunal, could deliver the parole function in a more efficient and cost-effective way
• considering the need for any additional measures to strengthen the Parole Board’s powers to reinforce its status as a court-like body

3.Improving public understanding and confidence:

• exploring whether further steps could be taken by the Board and other parts of the system to help explain and publicise what parole decision making is, how it works and what the assessment entails
• ways to better communicate that parole decisions are not about ongoing punishment for the offences committed and that release is not a reward for good behaviour in prison
• improving messaging that the parole system protects the public by authorising the continued detention of dangerous offenders and that only a minority of prisoners considered for parole are released

4.Openness and transparency:

• developing a way for victims to observe oral hearings in a safe and secure way without compromising the Board’s ability to perform its function and obtain the best possible evidence from the prisoner and professional witnesses
• considering the case for public hearings and whether this would be possible and appropriate in certain limited cases
• looking at ways to build on the work already done to improve openness and transparency

We have already gone some way to improving transparency, accountability and effectiveness of the current parole process following the extensive reviews that were carried out in the wake of the John Worboys case in 2018, including the introduction of decision summaries, a full review of all the Parole Board Rules and the creation of a new Reconsideration Mechanism for Parole Board decisions.

The changes we have implemented have concentrated on improving the parole process within its current framework. However, the government believes that the time is right to look at wider questions about more fundamental reform of the whole parole system, including whether the Parole Board should remain a non-executive departmental public body or whether the system would benefit from a differently constituted body to conduct the important function of deciding on the release of serious and dangerous offenders.

The number of decisions the Parole Board takes has risen significantly in recent years and ways of working have also changed with the Board holding more than thirty times the number of hearings held in 2000-01. The parole system has also had to adapt and change in light of the issues highlighted by recent cases like Worboys and others where public and victim confidence has been shaken. Therefore, the underlying aim of this review is to determine whether the Parole Board in its current form and constitution remains the most effective model for what the future of the parole system may look like; to command public confidence in the decisions it makes; and to deliver its functions in the most effective and transparent way possible, whilst ensuring that there is an effective independent judicial mechanism for keeping under review the continued lawfulness of custody.

In conducting the review, we will seek the views of stakeholders, experts and victims of crime beginning with a consultation on the issue of allowing victims and the general public to observe hearings for parole in some cases where it may be necessary in the interests of justice.

The review will aim to report by summer 2021 and the outcomes will be published.