Sir Michael: Soham concern

Sir Michael Bichard has expressed concern that not enough progress is being made on developing a national computer system to keep track of police intelligence.

The warning came in a follow-up report on the developments made since his original inquiry into the failings that led to the Soham murders.

Sir Michael also called for further progress on a registration scheme for those working with children, which should be delivered by 2007.

"Although there is a commitment to a police national IT intelligence system, central budget provision and a strategic (high-level) business case, its successful delivery is by no means guaranteed without a detailed business case and the delay in providing this is a concern to me," he said.

"Equally although there is commitment to a new scheme for barring those who should not work with children, which meets all the requirements of my proposed registration scheme, that project still needs to be delivered by 2007.

"The resources for this have not yet been allocated; the legislation will need to be taken through parliament and the scheme will need to ensure that it is easily accessed by those employing workers including parents recruiting, for example, an out of school tutor."

Reaction

Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Mark Oaten said Sir Michael "is right to be concerned at delays over the national IT intelligence system".

"Unless there is urgent progress made on this issue, the new intelligence system is at risk of becoming yet another government IT project which is delivered late and over budget," he warned.

But the home secretary said he was not complacent about the need to make further progress.

"The government is firmly committed to the protection for children and vulnerable adults in our society," Charles Clarke said.

"As we said last year we owe it to the parents of Jessica Chapman and Holly Wells to make substantial progress, as rapidly as possible, to ensure that the mistakes highlighted in the Bichard report are not repeated - that is what we shall continue driving through."

The follow-up review said that there had been good progress in some areas.

Actions

Among the actions taken so far, Sir Michael highlighted the government's reaffirmation that the police should be informed of offences against children.

There is also improved training for teachers involved in interviews for posts in schools, and a new code has been developed on inputting data on to the Police National Computer (PNC).

But Sir Michael said that police performance on putting data on to the PNC about arrests and summons "has not improved significantly or, in some respects, at all".

"That has been a long standing problem and it is disappointing that after all this time, more has not been achieved," he said.

"We are on the verge of having in the United Kingdom a coherent set of protective measures unrivalled anywhere, but if the national intelligence system and the barring scheme (registration scheme) are not in place by 2007, we shall have fallen short."