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I posted this on a related thread yesterday but it will bear repetition:

From Hansard on Monday:


Helen Goodman (Bishop Auckland) (Lab)

My constituent, who was raped repeatedly in childhood, came to see me in considerable distress before Christmas because the first she knew that her perpetrator had been released was when he visited the pub next to her place of work. I have raised the matter with the Department, but the letter I received from the Under-Secretary of State for Justice, the hon. Member for Bracknell (Dr Lee), blamed her for not giving the victim contact scheme her change of address. I would like the Secretary of State to commit to looking again at her case and to apologising to my constituent.


Mr Gauke

Obviously, I am not familiar with the case that the hon. Lady raises. As I said earlier, we need to look at communication with victims very closely. Clearly, in order to communicate it is necessary for the authorities to have contact details. [Interruption.] We need to find a way to ensure that the relevant authorities have those contact details, so that we can provide the support that the victims want.


Apparently the victim contact scheme are supposed to be psychic and know the new address of any victim who moves.


More widely: the Parole Board, like the judiciary, is and must remain independent not only of Ministers but of the three P-for-pernicious influences on Ministers:

Party and back-benchers
Press
Polls

and if that means less "transparency" - so be it.

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