Get Carter

Abstract

The ‘Carter Report’ (Carter, 2003) was issued at the beginning of the year, together with the Government’s initial response (Home Office, 2004). It provides an economic analysis of society’s responses to crime and a strategy intended to improve cost-effectiveness in the criminal justice system, while maintaining public confidence. The recommendation for a National Offender Management Service was accepted without further consultation and the new body is to be established from 1st June 2004. This decision signals the end of the probation service as a separate entity. It will create a market to `ensure the end-to-end management of offenders, regardless of whether they were given a custodial or community sentence' (Home Office, 2004, p. 14). The author examines Carter’s likely impact on the prison population and sets the review alongside the social policy analysis provided by the Social Exclusion Unit (2002). He identifies risks that must be accounted for in the development and implementation of this ambitious plan. Finally he raises concerns about what might be lost in the new arrangements.