Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, who was involved in the (a) shortlisting and (b) final appointment of Mr Paul McDowell as Chief Inspector of Probation.

The recruitment of Mr Paul McDowell as Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Probation (HMCIP) was fully compliant with the Commissioner for Public Appointments’ Code of Practice.

Shortlisting was undertaken by a panel comprising:

- A panel chair nominated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments;

- A Ministry of Justice Director; and

- Two independent members.

The shortlist was approved by the Secretary of State for Justice as the appointing Minister under the Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000.

The interviews were conducted by the same Panel, with the outcomes communicated to the Secretary of State for Justice as the appointing Minister. The Secretary of State for Justice referred to preferred candidate to the Justice Select Committee for a pre-appointment hearing. On consideration of the Select Committee’s report the Secretary of State for Justice confirmed the appointment and by convention, the Queen was informed.

The total cost of the appointment process for Paul McDowell as HMCIP, including the cost of external agency use, was £30,903.90 (inclusive of VAT).

The Government recognises the need to attract a strong and diverse range of candidates for all public appointments. For this reason, recruitment consultants may be used to assist with competitions for particularly significant roles, such as Chief Inspector of Probation, to ensure that this need is met and where advertising alone may not suffice.