Probation reform 'train crash poses a risk to public safety' ran the headline in the Independent on Monday 7 July. The paper reported on that ‘hundreds of danger assessments are not being carried out on criminal offenders’ putting the public at risk. CLICK HERE TO READ THE STORY.
Probation also featured in the New Economics NEF Blog – NEF is a think-tank which promotes social, economic and environmental justice.
While the LSE online British Politics and Policy blogged that “wholesale changes to the Probation system should be slowed down and piloted’’.
And there was even coverage in the Huffington Post, which ran the story ‘Probation Service Accused Of Randomly Outsourcing Jobs By 'Picking Names Out Of A Hat'
Plus Probation made the front page of the Swindon Advertiser which reported “The best performing probation trust in the country covering Wiltshire and Swindon has now disappeared and been replaced by a ‘shadow form’ while private companies bid to take over”.
Frances Crook, from the Howard League, wrote for Our Kingdom magazine on “Transforming probation? Or wrecking a service that works?”
And Politics UK wrote “There were fears of chaos in the government's probation privatisation programme today, after it emerged staff had been selected to be moved to private firms by having their names picked out of a hat.”
Meanwhile Inside Time ran an article by National Official, Tania Bassett, on ‘Probation Service vs private profit: the impact on service users and staff'.
And it wasn’t just about what is happening in Probation.
The Guardian reported that Peers are to hold an inquiry into the ancient office of the lord chancellor, asking whether it should be held by a lawyer or combined with the post of justice secretary; and for a real LOL, read John Crace’s pithy comment on Justice Oral Questions last week in the Guardian … “Last month a computer finally passed the Turing test and was identified as human. On Tuesday the justice secretary passed the Grayling test and was identified as a computer. The spin doctor in charge of Chris Grayling's medication at the moment needs to urgently lower his dose before his public appearances. In the Commons, he is a man who can make a monotone sound lively”.
Not a good press week for the Secretary of State all in all!