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What happens if CHS cannot find the volunteers?

Have you considered what might happen if we cannot get the volunteers?

So you agree that there are inaccuracies in the financial memorandum.

You do not agree that COSLA’s evidence is factual.

You do not agree that COSLA’s evidence is factual.

There will be an increase in demand for children’s hearings of somewhere between 10 and 20 per cent, will there not?

Why do we go by chronological age at all? Why do we not go by the age of accountability or responsibility? Some of the 16 and 17-year-olds that we are talking about have the mental age of someone much younger, so why are we stuck on chronological age?

All that I will say to you, minister, is that the recent record of recruitment shows a fall-off in the number of volunteers, particularly in the past few years, so there is a real risk that it will not be possible to recruit the number of volunteers required. It would be responsible of Government to consider what that scenario might look like, given the demand that will be put on the children’s hearings system.

What about training? Are you completely satisfied that the children’s hearings system has the capacity to give the high quality of training that will be required, given the fact that it will be dealing with 16 and 17-year-olds and, perhaps, a different range of offences?

No, no. What I am trying to—

It needs to be updated.

Do you also accept what COSLA says about the fact that there is no facility to transfer costs from the criminal justice system to local government?