Appointment of HM Chief Inspector of the Crown Prosecution Service - Justice Contents


Appendix 2


Letter to Rt Hon Jeremy Wright QC MP, Attorney General, from Rt Hon Sir Alan Beith MP, Chair of the Justice Select Committee,
14 September 2014

The recruitment of a Chief Inspector of Her Majesty's Crown Prosecution Service

Thank you for your letter and accompanying draft advert and job description outlining the planned recruitment process for the next Chief Inspector of Her Majesty's Crown Prosecution Service who is due to be appointed upon the end of the current Chief Inspector's term in March 2015. I can confirm that I am happy with the timetable you propose for the recruitment and the broad thrust of the draft advert and job description. On the latter, I have a few comments which you may wish to consider.

First, I note that the proposed overview of the role highlights the resource and budget constraints under which the new Chief Inspector will operate. Therefore, there may be merit in drawing out further, within the essential criteria, the need for good financial acumen, operational rigour and resource efficiency skills, perhaps as an addition to the fourth criterion listed. Similarly, there is rightly an emphasis on relationship building within the job description, and you may therefore wish to incorporate the importance of engagement with key stakeholders into the essential criteria.

I believe it would also be desirable for the Chief Inspector's ability to maintain independence to be emphasised further, perhaps within the penultimate essential criterion; the independence of the Chief Inspector is of great importance in ensuring the public's trust in the findings and recommendations of the Inspectorate. In addition, having considered the job description at the time of the current Chief Inspector's appointment in 2009, I note that the essential criteria then included a commitment to the principles and practice of natural justice and diversity. I believe there may be value in including a criterion along these lines on this occasion as well.

Finally, I have been extremely impressed with the practice of the current Chief Inspector in emphasising the importance of following up over time the Inspectorate's findings and recommendations. I would hope that in choosing a preferred candidate you will be looking for someone who is able to foster a similar ethos of continuous improvement and the monitoring of change over time.

I hope you find these suggestions of use, and I look forward to discussing this important role further with your preferred candidate upon their appearance before the Committee in December.


 
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