Press release

Parole Board Chair statement in relation to the release decision of John Worboys

Nick Hardwick, Parole Board Chair, has given a statement following the decision by a 3 member Parole Board panel to release John Worboys

Nick Hardwick

Professor Nick Hardwick, Chair of the Parole Board said:

“I recognise there is a lack transparency of Parole Board processes and I have recently set out options for change. We currently have a statutory duty under the Parole Board Rules that prevents disclosure of proceedings. We will shortly be launching a public consultation about how we share our decision making with the public.

I am very concerned some victims were not told about the decision, this must have been very distressing. There are robust arrangements in place for victims to be informed through The Victim Contact Service. We were told that had been done as usual in this case and released the decision on that basis.

On background: Nick recently did at the speech at the Butler Trust, the full speech can be found here:

The full Parole Board Rules can be found here:

Victims can sign up to the Victim Contact Service and will be kept informed about any parole review and will be offered the opportunity to submit a Victim Personal Statement

If you have any further queries, please contact the Parole Board on: 0203 334 6920 or comms@paroleboard.gov.uk

Published 5 January 2018