Seòmar agus comataidhean

That is very helpful—thank you.

Thank you both. That was a helpful outline of your priorities. The cabinet secretary touched on the potential for backlogs, particularly in the criminal justice system. I am keen to hear about the status of backlogs in the civil justice system as a result of closures due to the pandemic. Can you give us a wee update on that?

That is fine.

Under the next item, the committee will hear from the Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Veterans and the Minister for Community Safety about their priorities for session 6 in the civil justice area, which is part of the committee’s remit. I welcome to the meeting Keith Brown, Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Veterans; Ash Denham, Minister for Community Safety; and Neil Rennick, director of justice, and Denise Swanson, deputy director, civil law and legal system, from the Scottish Government.

I refer members to papers 4 and 5 and invite the cabinet secretary to make a short opening statement.

A couple of questions follow on from that. There is some concern that, for some people—perhaps a minority—virtual hearings provide a barrier, which may partly explain the reduction in business. How are we making sure that folk do not fall through the cracks? Does the reduction in business mean that folk are just not seeking justice, or does it mean that those cases will happen down the line and that we need to be prepared for that?

Welcome to the second meeting of the committee in session 6. Everyone is here today, so there are no apologies. Thanks to everyone for attending.

The first item on the agenda is to decide whether to take items 5 and 6, which are consideration of today’s evidence, in private. Do we agree to take those items in private?

Members indicated agreement.

Blair, do you want to add anything?

The committee would appreciate being kept apprised of any developments in your thinking in that area.

Thank you for being so frank, Blair—I am sure that members really appreciate that.

The next item on the agenda is the committee’s work programme. I refer members to paper 6 and ask them to note the decisions that were made at our business planning day. If members have any comments, they should email the clerks directly.

That concludes the public part of the meeting. Our next meeting will be on Tuesday 14 September, when we will continue to take evidence on the petition to end conversion therapy and hear from stakeholders representing the LGBTI community. We will also hear from the Cabinet Secretary for Social Security, Housing and Local Government on the Scottish Government’s priorities in session 6.