Burglars and drug dealers to have criminal records wiped to help them find jobs

More than 120,000 burglars, fraudsters, drug dealers and other offenders are to have their criminal records wiped clean under government plans to help them find work.

Criminals who have served jail sentences of more than four years will no longer have to tell employers about their past crimes as part of the Ministry of Justice’s (MoJ) rehabilitation plans.

At present, anyone jailed for more than four years is required by law to tell prospective employers about their criminal past. Recruiters are also entitled to carry out criminal records checks on them.

However, the crimes will become “spent” seven years after they complete their sentence under the provisions of the Government’s Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act that took effect at the weekend.

It will cover all former offenders including those who have not been convicted of any crime in the seven years since they completed their sentence and time on licence. The move affects nearly 125,000 people sentenced in 2022 alone.

It means most businesses will not be able to check the criminal records of job applicants with offences classed as spent.

Violent, sexual and terrorist offences

Only employers recruiting for jobs involving children or vulnerable people will be told. Violent, sexual and terrorist offences will remain exempt with such offenders being forced to declare their criminal records for the rest of their lives.

Alex Chalk, the Justice Secretary, said: “Carrying the weight of life-long criminal records even after serving their time is a huge barrier for many offenders seeking to reintegrate into society and turn away from a life of crime.

“These reforms will help ex-offenders get the steady income, routine and purpose they need which cuts reoffending and ensures fewer members of the public become victims of crime.”

It is part of a series of changes under which jail sentences of less than a year will become spent after 12 months without reoffending and convictions of one to four years will no longer be disclosed after four crime-free years.

Ministers pointed to research which showed that former offenders in steady employment were nine percentage points less likely to commit further crimes.

In October 2023 the MoJ announced plans to slash the number of offenders serving sentences under one year by introducing a legal presumption against them. They will instead be compelled to perform community work such as cleaning up neighbourhoods and scrubbing graffiti off walls.

However, criminal justice campaigners are concerned about convictions being concealed. “We all hope there will be some employers who give people a second chance. But it should not be a secret from them. If some employers are going to believe in second chances, they should be able to do it knowingly,” said one.

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