British doctors and nurses will be turned into police informants under Home Secretary Priti Patelʼs Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill, campaigners have warned, as the legislation faces scrutiny in Parliament.
Describing it as “oppressive”, 665 GPs, nurses, teachers and social, youth and outreach workers have written to Patel saying the new requirements to report people to the police will force them to breach the confidence of those with whom they work, reports The Telegraph.
Signatories say they are “appalled” by the proposals, which will “directly conflict with our duties and actively put people we work with in harmʼs way”.
“…This Bill will hinder our ability to effectively support the people with whom we work by eroding relationships of trust and duties of confidentiality,” they said. “Most importantly, it will expand the criminalisation, surveillance and punishment of already-over-policed communities.”
The Bill, to be debated in the House of Lords this week, is part of efforts to overhaul the justice system, cut offending and make streets safer.
Gavin Moorghen, of the British Association of Social Workers, said: “The duty of confidentiality is crucial to our ability to protect peopleʼs dignity and privacy, foster relationships of trust, and deliver high quality care.
“The only effective approach to serious violence is to focus on the root causes such as poverty, racism and other forms of structural injustice.”
According to The Telegraph, a Home Office spokeswoman said: “The duty will hold specified authorities and bodies to account, not individuals. There will be no mandatory requirement for individual professionals to report information they hold under this duty.”
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