Education and Home Affairs - Approved Panel Minutes - 9 July 2007

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Agenda matter

Action

1. Records of Meetings

The Panel approved and signed the records of its meetings of 4th June, 11th June, 13th June, 14th June, 25th June (public and private sessions) 2007 as well as the records of its meetings on 30th  April  2007  with  the  Ministers  for  Education,  Sport  and Culture and Home Affairs. It was noted that the records had previously been circulated electronically to Members and had been amended.

The Panel agreed to defer consideration of the record of its meeting of 2nd July 2007.

[02/07/07, Item 1]

2. Rôle of the Centenier in the Magistrate's Court

The Panel considered progress on its Scrutiny Review of the rôle of  the  Centenier  in  the  Magistrate's  Court. This  part  of  the meeting was held in private session under Item 3.2.1(a)(xiv) of Code of Practice on Public Access to Official Information.

[05/07/07, Item 1]

3. Early Years

The  Panel  was  advised  that  there  had  been  no  progress  in identifying potential candidates for the expert advisor. It was noted that the Scrutiny Officer would follow up this matter.

The  Panel  recalled  its  previous  agreement  to  contact organisations that would ultimately be invited to Public Hearings in order to outline the Panel's intentions. It was noted that Public Hearings  would  most  likely  be  held  towards  the  end  of September or at the beginning of October 2007.

The Panel recalled that the review had been due to finish by the end  of  October  2007  due  to  its  understanding  of  the  work timetable followed by the Department of Education, Sport and Culture. The  Panel  was  informed  that  the  Department  had advised that its work timetable would not require the Panel to have produced its report by the end of October 2007.

The  Panel  was  advised  that  a  member  of  the  public  had contacted the Chairman in relation to the review.

[11/06/07, Item 9]

4. Criminal Justice Policy

The Panel considered what further action to take regarding the

Criminal  Justice  Policy  following  correspondence,  dated  31st May 2007, from the Minister for Home Affairs. The Panel noted that amendments to Pillar 9 of the Policy might be made as a result  of  the  Panel's  comments  to  the  Minister. The  Panel agreed that, once the draft Policy had been lodged, it would upload the work it had undertaken on this topic to the Scrutiny website. It was noted that the work could also potentially be circulated to all States Members for their information. The Panel agreed  to  write  to  the Minister  to advise  her  of  its intended course of action. It further agreed that its correspondence would seek clarification regarding when the Policy would be lodged for debate and whether it was still delayed due to the Minister's desire to await the Panel's Centeniers report.

WM/TO

[25/06/07, Item 5]

5. IMF Visit

The  Panel  considered  correspondence  from  the  Minister  for Home Affairs, dated 24th May 2007, regarding the work that would be undertaken on draft legislation in preparation for the visit  of  the  International  Monetary  Fund  (IMF)  in  2008. The Panel agreed to write to the Minister to request clarification of when the draft legislation would be lodged and to advise that each item would be considered by the Panel in its usual fashion.

The Panel recalled that the Chairman of the Economic Affairs Scrutiny Panel had advised the States Assembly that a sub- panel would be formed to investigate money laundering. It was noted that such a review would fall partly within the Panel's remit. The  Panel  was  advised,  however,  that  the  Economic Affairs sub-panel would not in fact be reviewing matters that fell within the Education and Home Affairs remit. It was noted that co-ordination of matters such as these lay within the purview of the Chairmen's Committee.

WM/TO

[30/04/07, Item 1(2)c]

6. Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme

The Panel considered a paper relating to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme (CICS) and noted that correspondence had occurred between the Departments of Home Affairs and Treasury  and  Resources  regarding  potential  solutions  to  the problems posed by the Scheme. It was noted that a report might have been presented to the Council of Ministers on this matter; the Officers were requested to clarify this situation.

The  Panel  agreed  that  further  work  on  this  topic  would  be beneficial  and  requested  the  Scrutiny  Officers  to  undertake further research. It was noted that a report produced by the Comptroller and Auditor General, Mr. C. Swinson OBE, on the Criminal Offences Confiscation Fund was potentially relevant to this issue; the Officers were requested to circulate copies.

WM/TO

WM/TO

WM/TO

7. Prisoner Repatriation

The Panel noted correspondence, dated 11th June 2007, from Senator  B.E.  Shenton  to  H.M.  Attorney  General  regarding prisoner repatriation. It was further noted that an article on this subject had recently appeared in the Jersey Evening Post. The Panel was advised by the Chairman that Senator Shenton would continue his work on the topic.

[25/06/07,

8. Action Updates and Matters Arising

The Panel noted the actions undertaken in response to requests made at its previous meetings.

The Panel noted that, subsequent to its approval of the record of its meeting with the Minister for Education, Sport and Culture, a