Offender Rehabilitation Bill [Lords]

Debate between Baroness Chapman of Darlington and John Pugh

Tuesday 14th January 2014 Commons Chamber

[Jenny Chapman]

I do not quite follow the hon. Gentleman’s logic. Had we kept the pilots running, we would be exactly where we are now, but with more information on which to base a decision. Also, we could conceivably deliver supervision to short-sentence prisoners without the sell-off and reform the Government seem hellbent on implementing.

[John Pugh (Southport) (LD)]

Does the hon. Lady not accept that my colleagues’ arguments are against pilots in general, not pilots in this specific case?

[Jenny Chapman]

We are in favour of piloting. We like to have evidence on which to base decisions, and we think it odd that the Government scrapped a pilot that was already set up and of which they spoke very highly when they set it up. That was a very strange decision, and we think the Government made a mistake when they cancelled the pilots.