Jon Venables, who murdered two-year-old James Bulger in 1993, will have his latest parole bid heard in private. This decision by the Parole Board comes despite a plea from James Bulger's mother, Denise Fergus, for the hearing to be public.
Ms Fergus had demanded a public hearing to address what she described as "misinformation" about the case, which she stated had a "retraumatising impact" on her. Various media organisations also applied for the hearing to be public.
Parole Board hearings are typically private, though they can be made public "in the interests of justice." The Parole Board explained its decision by stating that a public hearing would make it "very difficult for Jon Venables to give evidence" due to concerns he could be "being listened to by people who are seeking to get information so that they can kill him."
Venables, 44, will have his case reviewed at an oral hearing more than two years after his last appeal. In 2023, the Parole Board rejected his bid, concluding he still posed a danger to children and could re-offend.
Victims have been able to attend private parole hearings since reforms were nationally implemented in April, aimed at increasing confidence in the justice system. A spokeswoman for Denise Fergus previously confirmed her application to observe the hearing had been granted.