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| Government faces probation battle | |
| (6 minutes later) | |
| The government is facing a revolt by up to 40 Labour backbenchers over plans to privatise the Probation Service. | The government is facing a revolt by up to 40 Labour backbenchers over plans to privatise the Probation Service. |
| Ministers will lose a House of Commons vote on Wednesday if the rebels side with the Lib Dems and Tories to reject the Offender Management Bill. | Ministers will lose a House of Commons vote on Wednesday if the rebels side with the Lib Dems and Tories to reject the Offender Management Bill. |
| Critics say letting firms and voluntary groups in England and Wales run services would increase re-offending rates and destroy "local connections". | Critics say letting firms and voluntary groups in England and Wales run services would increase re-offending rates and destroy "local connections". |
| But the government says its reforms are essential to improving public safety. | But the government says its reforms are essential to improving public safety. |
| Staff 'poaching' | |
| Tony Blair has never before lost a piece of legislation in a Commons vote. | Tony Blair has never before lost a piece of legislation in a Commons vote. |
| The government won a vote on an amendment tabled by Labour MP Neil Gerrard which would have excluded firms and voluntary groups from carrying out "core" probation tasks. | |
| What we end up with is a mass of different providers and we lose a national service Neil Gerrard MP | What we end up with is a mass of different providers and we lose a national service Neil Gerrard MP |
| MPs voted by 267 to 111, a majority of 156. | |
| Mr Gerrard said companies with no experience of handling offenders would end up "poaching" staff from the Probation Service. | |
| "What we end up with is a mass of different providers and we lose a national service and you start to get fragmentation then. | "What we end up with is a mass of different providers and we lose a national service and you start to get fragmentation then. |
| "It is very much more difficult then to control what is going on and we lose all the local connections that are there at the moment." | "It is very much more difficult then to control what is going on and we lose all the local connections that are there at the moment." |
| Voting tight | Voting tight |
| With the Liberal Democrats opposed to all of the bill and the Conservatives opposed to large parts of it, the parliamentary arithmetic will be tight on its third reading in the Commons, according to BBC political correspondent James Hardy. | With the Liberal Democrats opposed to all of the bill and the Conservatives opposed to large parts of it, the parliamentary arithmetic will be tight on its third reading in the Commons, according to BBC political correspondent James Hardy. |
| Mr Blair has a majority of 62, meaning 31 Labour MPs are needed to vote against it to bring about a defeat. | Mr Blair has a majority of 62, meaning 31 Labour MPs are needed to vote against it to bring about a defeat. |
| It is not about killing off the Probation Service, it is about supporting the work of probation officers Gerry SutcliffeHome Office Minister | It is not about killing off the Probation Service, it is about supporting the work of probation officers Gerry SutcliffeHome Office Minister |
| The government has tabled its own amendment to exclude the writing of court reports on offenders from the provisions of the Bill, but it is thought this is unlikely to pacify opponents. | The government has tabled its own amendment to exclude the writing of court reports on offenders from the provisions of the Bill, but it is thought this is unlikely to pacify opponents. |
| Home Secretary John Reid is attempting to win over Labour backbenchers. | Home Secretary John Reid is attempting to win over Labour backbenchers. |
| Home Office Minister Gerry Sutcliffe told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "We have a list of voluntary sector bodies who say they can help us cut reoffending. I think it would be criminal if we did not allow them to. | Home Office Minister Gerry Sutcliffe told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "We have a list of voluntary sector bodies who say they can help us cut reoffending. I think it would be criminal if we did not allow them to. |
| "It is not about killing off the Probation Service, it is about supporting the work of probation officers but supplementing that through other providers. | "It is not about killing off the Probation Service, it is about supporting the work of probation officers but supplementing that through other providers. |
| "I can't see for the life in me why people would want to stop those organisations being involved." | "I can't see for the life in me why people would want to stop those organisations being involved." |