The Ministry of Justice will start procuring the delivery of probation services from the voluntary and private sector in less than four weeks' time, with a view to have them start delivering in the autumn of 2014, despite moves in the House of Lords to block the reforms.

There are concerns that the reforms are happening too fast, and that smaller voluntary organisations will not have sufficient time or capacity to take part. 

The Ministry of Justice announced plans to move the probation service into the private and voluntary sector in January and published the Transforming Rehabilitation document detailing its vision for a payment-by-results structure.

The commitment to new legislation was reaffirmed in the Queen’s Speech and Lord McNally introduced the Offender Rehabilitation Bill to the Lords in May.

The Offender Rehabilitation Bill will remove 35 probation trusts and replace them with 21 networks of prime and subcontractors from outside the public sector.

However, during its passage through Parliament, peers tried to block the Bill and called on the government to re-examine the reforms.

Lord Ramsbotham successfully tabled an amendment to prevent any changes to the probation service being made without resolutions being approved in both chambers.

The Bill's sponsor, Lord McNally, responded by saying that the amendment is, and always was, “defective” and that MPs would have views on it before the Bill returns to the House of Lords.

Lord Ramsbotham was told that the government’s plans for the probation service will go ahead “regardless of the vote”.

A Ministry of Justice spokesman confirmed to civilsociety.co.uk that government will start Transforming Rehabilitation procurement in the second half of September 2013. He added that government will want providers to start delivering services in autumn 2014.

The Offender Rehabilitation Bill is now due to have a second reading in the House of Commons – though no date has yet been set.