Meeting of the Parliament 08 December 2015
I am delighted to be able to take part in the stage 3 debate on the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Bill. I reiterate my thanks to Barnardo’s Scotland for its support and encouragement on the amendments that I lodged at stage 2, for bringing them through to today and seeing them passed at stage 3. I particularly thank Nicki Wray for her tireless work in progressing this important issue. I also offer my gratitude to the Scottish Government for working with me ahead of today’s debate to bring about what will be a substantial change for the children of imprisoned parents.
It will come as no surprise to members that I intend to focus my speech on the children and families who are affected by imprisonment. The amendments in my name that we agreed are a turning point for children and families who are affected by imprisonment in Scotland.
Children are often the forgotten victims of crime. Many witness the arrest and, in some cases, the crime that leads to the arrest. The children of prisoners face stigma, poorer educational outcomes, mental health problems and behavioural problems. Research shows that children who have a parent in prison are more likely than their peers to become incarcerated as adults. With the right support, we can prevent today’s children becoming the prisoners of the future.
The Scottish Government has a number of initiatives to reduce reoffending. In my view, my amendments are a step towards preventing offending.
I mentioned the stigma that is attached to imprisonment, and the Children and Young People’s Commissioner, Tam Baillie, in supporting what I seek to achieve through the amendments that we have agreed to, also referenced that. Research in the “Not Seen, Not Heard, Not Guilty” report by the commissioner shows that many children of prisoners find it difficult to ask for help.
Ahead of today’s stage 3 debate, I visited Perth prison, where I met a number of fathers who have been working with a parenting programme that is run in the prison by the thrive project. Funded by the Scottish Government, it is an excellent programme that needs to be rolled out across Scotland’s prison estate. The project, which is run by Barnardo’s and Enable, aims to identify families that are in need of support, create greater engagement with them and respond to the needs of both the adults and the children. The fathers spoke of the positive benefits that they see from the parenting programme, the positive effect that it can have on their children and the importance of the bonds that they want to have with their children when they are released.
One father spoke about how he never thought of his children when he was offending and said that he did not understand the impact that it could have on them until he was sentenced and the children started to visit. The father, who is working with the thrive project and the parenting programme, told me how hard it is for him to watch his young daughter cry as she leaves the visiting room, and he said that he never wants that to happen to him or his child again once he is released.
I am grateful to the fathers that I met for being so open and honest in the short time that I spent with them. Promoting positive family relationships is essential in criminal justice. It is a route out of prison and a tool to reduce reoffending, and it can help to tackle the inequality that we see in society.
Once the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Bill has been passed, I will be happy to work with the Scottish Government further to ensure that my amendments do what they are designed to do. We will soon know how many children in Scotland have a parent in prison, and with that information we can get it right for every child. I look forward to the day when children are no longer the forgotten victims of crime.
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