Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will commission an investigation into the effect of reforms to the probation service since May 2010 on the overall efficiency of the justice system.

Public Protection is a key priority for this Government. Given the social and financial costs incurred by high reoffending rates, it is imperative that we act now to help offenders turn their backs on crime. With more than half a million crimes committed each year by those who have broken the law before, the status quo is not an option. It is for this reason that the Government set out in the Coalition Agreement our commitment to reform offender rehabilitation services.

The Government does of course understand the need to implement these reforms in a manner that ensures that public safety is maintained. This is why we have been clear that we will manage these changes in a controlled way and will not proceed until we are satisfied that it is safe to do so. We continue to monitor the performance of the system.