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Official Report: search what was said in Parliament

The Official Report is a written record of public meetings of the Parliament and committees.  

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Dates of parliamentary sessions
  1. Session 1: 12 May 1999 to 31 March 2003
  2. Session 2: 7 May 2003 to 2 April 2007
  3. Session 3: 9 May 2007 to 22 March 2011
  4. Session 4: 11 May 2011 to 23 March 2016
  5. Session 5: 12 May 2016 to 5 May 2021
  6. Current session: 12 May 2021 to 19 December 2024
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Displaying 802 contributions

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Criminal Justice Committee

Victims’ Rights and Victim Support

Meeting date: 22 September 2021

Katy Clark

Yes. In the previous evidence session, we heard that there are resourcing issues with regard to evidence on commission hearings. I want to ask Mary Glasgow in particular and perhaps Kate Wallace about that. Are you experiencing that? Do you believe that there is more scope for using evidence on commission in relation to children?

Criminal Justice Committee

Domestic Abuse, Gendered Violence and Sexual Offences (Priorities in Session 6)

Meeting date: 22 September 2021

Katy Clark

That is helpful. DCS Faulds, do you have any thoughts in relation to cases not being taken forward because of issues to do with the forum, as opposed to the evidence? Would changing the forum lead to more cases coming forward, for whatever reason?

11:30  

Criminal Justice Committee

Domestic Abuse, Gendered Violence and Sexual Offences (Priorities in Session 6)

Meeting date: 22 September 2021

Katy Clark

You have a great deal of experience of dealing with rape victims at a very early stage. DCS Faulds, would more rape victims come forward if they felt that the process was going to work in a different way?

Criminal Justice Committee

Covid (Justice Sector)

Meeting date: 8 September 2021

Katy Clark

If there is not enough time, that is not a problem at all.

Criminal Justice Committee

Covid (Justice Sector)

Meeting date: 8 September 2021

Katy Clark

I want to pick up on some of the points that were raised earlier about the emergency Covid regulations. In the programme for government, it is clear that we should expect legislation on custody and bail, and legislation to make some of the emergency Covid practices permanent. Pauline McNeill has already raised the issue of time limits, and we have heard powerful evidence about the experiences of witnesses. There has been success with using electronic documents and taking more evidence on commission, and it is suggested that that should be extended perhaps to have witness evidence taken remotely.

In Scotland, we have an adversarial rather than an inquisitorial system. Whether that is right or wrong, it is the system that we have. On the detail of what would in your opinion be acceptable and what would not be, to what extent do you think that those kinds of methods, particularly the hybrid model, should be used by the agreement of both parties? What detail should be in the legislation that you think it would be reasonable for this place to pass? What would that look like? Could you give us a bit more detail on that, because it is going to be a big issue?

Perhaps Tony Lenehan and Ken Dalling could come in on those questions. I am looking for the detail of what you think would work.

Criminal Justice Committee

Covid (Justice Sector)

Meeting date: 8 September 2021

Katy Clark

I have one final question, which is for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service. Last year, there was a doubling of fire fatalities—

Criminal Justice Committee

Covid (Justice Sector)

Meeting date: 8 September 2021

Katy Clark

I ask Ken Dalling whether he agrees that the virtual approach should be taken by agreement. There will be police witnesses where the evidence is relatively uncontroversial, and it could be agreed but, with other key witnesses where, as Tony Lenehan said, the evidence is critical and controversial, would it be right for that evidence to be taken remotely if the accused and their representatives did not agree? Is there a need for agreement on that, to give the right to a fair trial?

Criminal Justice Committee

Criminal Justice (Scottish Government Priorities)

Meeting date: 1 September 2021

Katy Clark

I think that we will come on to the matter of community justice later.

When the Covid restrictions were introduced, politicians across the UK and the political spectrum said that they were the most draconian restrictions that had ever been known. How will you guard against some people in the system trying to keep some of the practices that were brought in during Covid, given that there were good reasons for the way that we did things before Covid?

Criminal Justice Committee

Criminal Justice (Scottish Government Priorities)

Meeting date: 1 September 2021

Katy Clark

Of course, sometimes there are cash pressures on people to keep new ways of working.

On vaccination, both the Prison Officers Association Scotland and the Scottish Police Federation have expressed concerns that their members have not been given priority as key workers. That may be an issue both when it comes to the booster and for seasonal flu. Have you made a decision on that, and will you give those workers priority status? To do so could assist massively in the sector.

Criminal Justice Committee

Criminal Justice (Scottish Government Priorities)

Meeting date: 1 September 2021

Katy Clark

I may come back to that issue, because we are talking about a young population, which will tend to be vaccinated later.

On sexual offences, the number of reported recent rapes has increased by more than a third, to 631 between April and June, compared with the same period last year; and a total of 3,720 sexual crimes, both recent and non-recent, were recorded in the first quarter, which is an increase of nearly 25 per cent. I know that you have indicated a planned spend of £100 million on prevention of violence against women and girls, but what are you doing further to address that crisis, and what will the timetable be when it comes to the Lord Justice Clerk’s recommendations on how we deal with offences such as rape?