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Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Bill [HL]

I understand the strength of feeling in the Committee and I undertake to look at this issue further to see whether we can give further assurances on it in the Bill. We believe that the objective is secured already, but in the light of what my noble friend and the noble Baroness have said, I will look at it further. However, having established that there is a strong read-across between the two lists at the moment and an obligation on the IBB to consider whether information leading to a bar in respect of one part of the workforce should lead to a bar in respect of another, I invite the Committee to look at the construction of Schedule 2(4), which sets out the relevant conduct that can lead to a bar in respect of the children’s workforce. As Members of the Committee will see, it lists four areas: ““(a)   conduct which endangers a child or is likely to endanger a child; (b)   conduct which, if repeated against or in relation to a child, would endanger that child or would be likely to endanger him; (c)   conduct involving child pornography, if it appears to the IBB that the conduct is inappropriate; (d)   conduct of a sexual nature involving a child, if it appears to the IBB that the conduct is inappropriate””. The equivalent list in respect of the adult workforce, set out in paragraph 9, is framed in almost identical terms, but of course substituting the word ““adult”” for ““child””: ““(a)   conduct which endangers a vulnerable adult or is likely to endanger a vulnerable adult; (b)   conduct which, if repeated against or in relation to a vulnerable adult, would endanger that adult or would be likely to endanger him; (c)   conduct involving pornography, if it appears to the IBB that the conduct is inappropriate; (d)   sexual behaviour with or towards a vulnerable adult which appears to the IBB to be inappropriate””. It will be clear to noble Lords that paragraphs 4 and 9 are very closely aligned. They give substantial reassurance that the consideration made by the IBB will be in respect of both workforces, but I will consider further the points made to see whether we think any further reassurance is necessary.