Dr Luke Evans, Member of Parliament for Bosworth, and Alberto Costa, MP for South Leicestershire, have met with the Justice Secretary to raise their concerns about the Parole Board rules.
The Leicestershire MPs pressed the Government to rethink the rules that have allowed child-rapist and murderer Colin Pitchfork to successfully appeal for the Parole Board to reconsider a previous decision to keep him behind bars.
In their meeting with the Secretary of State for Justice, the Leicestershire MPs expressed frustration that the Parole Board has now twice reversed its original June 2023 decision to release Pitchfork following appeals from both the Justice Secretary and subsequently Pitchfork himself.
Colin Pitchfork uniquely applied for reconsideration of a reconsidered decision, and on 12th February 2024 the Parole Board confirmed that it had granted his application on the grounds that the provisional decision of 7th December 2023 (to keep him behind bars) was irrational. This is the first time that the Secretary of State, and then subsequently the prisoner, has successfully applied to the Parole Board for reconsideration.
The local MP's expressed their disappointment that the law allowed for Colin Pitchfork to appeal to the Parole Board to reconsider the December 2023 decision to keep him behind bars. Despite the fact that the December 2023 decision not to release was itself the result of an appeal.
In addition to the case of Colin Pitchfork, Dr Luke Evans raised his concerns about the release of Edwin Hopkins, killer of a 15-year-old schoolgirl in Nuneaton and sought assurances from the Justice Secretary that new laws will put public safety at the forefront of future parole decisions.
In response Justice Secretary Alex Chalk gave his assurances of the robustness of the Victims and Prisoners Bill and highlighted that the Bill will also give the Secretary of State powers to block a Parole Board decision to release some of the most serious offenders and direct that the decision be made by a court.
Dr Luke Evans, Member of Parliament for Bosworth, said “I am grateful to the Justice Secretary, Alex Chalk, for meeting with Alberto Costa and I to discuss the much-needed reforms to the parole system given the ongoing local cases of Colin Pitchfork and Edwin Hopkins.”
After the meeting, Dr Luke Evans asked about the case of Colin Pitchfork in the House of Commons. Dr Evans asked “I thank the [Justice Secretary] for meeting me and the Member for South Leicestershire to discuss the egregious case of Colin Pitchfork, the double child rapist, who has had problems bouncing in and out through the Parole Board system.
“I know that [the Justice Secretary] cannot change the law on this retrospectively, but what can he do in upcoming legislation to ensure that we have the protections for our communities to make sure they are safe and that reoffenders are not released?”
Alex Chalk, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, responded “I thank the Member for Bosworth for raising this incredibly important case and for taking it up so powerfully on behalf of his constituents.
“In the Sentencing Bill, we have a proposal such that people who commit crimes of murder involving sexual and sadistic conduct will not be released, because they will be expected to serve a whole-life order. That is just, on behalf of the British people, and it also helps to keep communities such as that of [South Leicestershire and Hinckley and Bosworth] safe.”
Alberto Costa, Member of Parliament for South Leicestershire, said “The Parole Board Rules were amended in 2019 to avoid another John Worboys scenario, when the Minister was unable to issue judicial review proceedings against the Parole Board. The rules were never intended to allow a prisoner to challenge, on a cost-free basis, a reconsidered decision.”
“I am grateful to the Justice Secretary for listening to Dr Luke Evans and me. We have committed to working on this issue for our constituents, many of whom still carry the trauma of Colin Pitchfork’s crimes and have come to care deeply about the Parole Board and public safety.
“I think the Parole Board do an excellent job overall, but I cannot believe we are in a position where Colin Pitchfork has successfully managed to claim a decision not to release him is irrational.”
