Gamekeeper Turns Poacher

The news that Phil Weatley the former Director General of NOMS and who retired barely six months ago is to take up an appointment with the private security firm G4S will not surprise some, but is still shocking in my view. How can it be in any way right that the former top Civil Servant and man privy to all the internal costings of the Prison Service, will now be advising the commercial competition when the next round of prison market testing begins? He will also have detailed inside knowledge in relation to other services due to be contracted out in the Probation Service such as Approved Premises and Unpaid Work.

I might add that as if that wasn't bad enough, in the summer he accepted an invitation to join the board of the St Giles Trust who of course are responsible for running the first Payment by Result project at HMP Peterborough. They are likely to be significant beneficiaries of further government contracts. Am I being naive here, but I always thought that one basic tenet of capitalism was a level playing field?

Interestingly, Mr Wheatley got into a spot of bother last year following a conversation with Harry Fletcher of NAPO when it is reported that he appeared partisan in advising the Union not to attack the government and Jack Straw in particular and warned them that a future Conservative government would be likely to make big cuts.

I even notice here that the jailhouse blogger and friend felt that the reason for his retirement was that 'things would be too uncomfortable if the Tories win the next general election'. Well what a silver lining that particular cloud has delivered for Mr Wheatley!