Let's hope that  the new Justice Secretary - Robert Buckland QC -  supports reform of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act and the general approach to disclosure.

While not a criminal case, he has certainly benefited in the past from disclosure rules which meant he did not have to declare previous misconduct when being appointed to one of the most senior offices of state!

His appointment as Solicitor General for England and Wales in July 2014 attracted media attention after it was revealed he had been found guilty of professional misconduct by the Bar Standards Board for a case related to work in 2008. He had headed up an investigation into a racially-motivated attack at a school at which he was a governor. Despite having no legal grounds to do so, Buckland sought to obtain documents relating to the incident that were held by a barrister representing one of the pupils involved. In response, the Attorney General's office stated that Buckland's breach had been "minor" and that the finding "was removed from the Bar records after two years and therefore Mr Buckland was not required to declare it upon appointment as Solicitor General