Some great news tonight as Liberal Democrat Home Office Minister Lynne Featherstone announced that there will be a full review of the way the Criminal Records check system works.

A criminal records regime review will take place, led by Sunita Mason, the Government’s Independent Advisor for Criminality Information Management. Mrs Mason will consider whether the disclosure of minor offences and police intelligence to prospective employers within the criminal recorders check should still form part of this process.

This is exciting news, and exactly what I and othrs have been writing about frequently for some time. I know that the most read articles ever on this site have been about CRB checks and particularly about minor offences, police intelligence and malicious allegations. They have generated more comment than anything else I’ve ever written, and have produced some very affecting contributions from readers. I hope that this review brings some comfort to them tonight.

When Lynne Featherstone became Minister with responsibility for the CRB system I had hopes that there would be a review. In fact I wrote to her urging action more than once. And now it’s happened, which is marvellous. The government, and a Lib Dem Minister at that, are looking into this system at last, and will hopefully respond to the clear injustices that it is producing at the moment.

The Criminal Records Review will examine whether the criminal records regime strikes the right balance between respecting civil liberties and protecting the public. It is expected to make proposals to scale back the use of systems involving criminal records to common sense levels. The review will be in two phases, and will include consideration of the following issues:

In phase 1: 

(i) Could the balance between civil liberties and public protection be improved by scaling back the employment vetting systems which involve the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB)?

(ii) Where Ministers decide such systems are necessary, could they be made more proportionate and less burdensome?

(iii) Should police intelligence form part of CRB disclosures?

In phase 2: 

1. How should the content of a ‘criminal record’ be defined?

2. Where should criminal records be kept and who should be responsible for managing them?

3. Who should have access to criminal records databases, for what purposes and subject to what controls and checks? To what extent should police intelligence be disclosed?

4. What capacity should individuals have to access, challenge and correct their own criminal records?

5. Could the administration of criminal records be made more straightforward, efficient and cost-effective?

6. Could guidance and information on the operation of the criminal records regime be improved?

7. How effective is the integration of overseas data into the criminal records regime?

The review is part of a wider review announced today into the controversial Vetting and Barring system which will re-examine whether the scheme is the most appropriate mechanism to protect children and vulnerable people and, if so, how many roles should be covered by it.

The review is set to present recommendations to government in the new year.

Rick