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Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Bill [Lords]

The hon. Lady failed to answer the question posed to her, so I shall move on. Amendment No. 201 provides for a defence where a barred individual seeks to engage in activity without realising that it was regulated activity. As well intentioned as the amendment is, it is unnecessary and could introduce a dangerous loophole that Opposition Members are on the verge of voting to support. We certainly do not wish to criminalise individuals unfairly, so we will ensure that the scheme is well understood. Before the commencement of the Act, guidance will be issued that will provide further detail about what type of activity will be covered by regulated activity. We will consult with stakeholders about the most effective means of ensuring that all those subject to the requirements of the scheme are aware which roles will be covered by the definition of regulated activity. We will also provide an advisory facility to employers and individuals to help them comply with the requirements of the scheme. In addition, when an individual is informed that they are barred, the intention is that this communication will include an explanation of the types of activity from which they are barred. Setting this out clearly for newly barred people will help to minimise the risk that the amendment seeks to address. The amendment could in fact introduce a different risk—that unscrupulous barred individuals would seek to escape the offence in the Bill by arguing that they did not know that a particular activity was a regulated activity. That is what Opposition Members are considering supporting in the Lobby this evening. We are trying to keep devious paedophiles out of our schools, and the possibility opened up by the amendment is too great a risk. Hon. Members need to consider their position on the issue. Government amendments to which I shall speak later will remove the need for a barred individual to consider the frequency of a particular activity. The definition of regulated activity for the purposes of barring will be simpler to understand as a result. This will make even more remote the likelihood of engaging, or seeking to engage, in regulated activity without knowing that it is regulated activity. The hon. Member for East Worthing and Shoreham (Tim Loughton) claims that I am on the side of the employer. That is not the case. We are providing clarity for the employee about the meaning of frequency. He should concentrate and read the Bill to understand that. Amendments Nos. 256 and 257 are intended to prevent regulated activity providers or appropriate officers from committing an offence if they fail to make an appropriate check or obtain relevant information where they are not at fault. Amendments Nos. 208 to 210 ensure that the person or body at the top of an organisation is ultimately responsible for checking individuals engaging in regulated activity. If no check is carried out, that person or body would be liable. These amendments are important in ensuring that organisations take their responsibilities seriously. The hon. Lady should be reassured that new clauses 15 and 16 and related amendments ensure that individual employees of a regulated activity provider who fail to make a check commit an offence only if their failure to check was due to their act or reckless default. We believe that this is both fair and appropriate. It ensures that individuals take their responsibilities seriously but does not penalise individual employees who are not at fault. I reiterate my previous commitments and the commitments of my noble Friend in the other place that we intend to have widespread ongoing communications to ensure that organisations and individuals are aware of the requirements upon them. Question put and agreed to. Clause read a Second time and added to the Bill.