Member

On the point about accountability, which I agree with the noble Lord is important, while we are saying that there has to be representation from the police in the new team, they will remain linked to their force. The local authority will not have any authority over them. The police person is there to provide the team with the information that they have. For example, if they have been called out on a domestic abuse call or to child criminal exploitation, they are there to help the social worker and team come to the right decision for the child. I have to say that I would have thought that for policing, as for other agencies, getting the decision right for the child at this absolutely critical moment is, frankly—although this is not the primary reason for doing it—likely to prevent further work and, more importantly, prevent damage to that child further down the track, so it feels like a worthwhile activity to me.