Meeting of the Parliament 04 June 2019
Liam Kerr was with me at this morning’s Justice Committee meeting, in which we discussed the presumption against short sentences. The committee is deliberating on the matter, and one of the most compelling contributions was from Professor Tata, who said that, if we are to have a presumption against short sentences—my party and I certainly support that—we need to think about the longer-term and wider implications of such a policy, such as the demands on the prison estate.
This morning, we heard some compelling evidence, which I will repeat. I am sure that Liam Kerr will acknowledge that these comments were made. Colin McConnell, the chief executive of the Scottish Prison Service, said that prison is about deterrence, rehabilitation and punishment. I do not know whether he said those things in a particular order, but rehabilitation is important. James Maybee, who was representing Social Work Scotland, recognised some of the challenges that might be associated with a presumption against short sentences. There are always such challenges, and Liam Kerr had the good grace to acknowledge that point—indeed, I agree with what he said about it being right for society to take a “collective risk”. If we are risk averse, we will bring about a situation similar to that which has happened with home detention curfews, where we have seen a plummeting of the use of one of the facilities.
Liam Kerr always says that there needs to be an evidence base, and I commend him for taking that approach to his duties. The Labour amendment mentions that point, too. Let us take evidenced decisions. James Maybee talked about assessing risk and need. We also heard from Dr Katrina Morrison, from Howard League Scotland, who said that we need a conversation about what punishment is and what it is not.
I fear, however, that Mr Kerr’s proposal is pandering to a certain audience. I align myself with the comments of my colleague Pauline McNeill, who said that the proposal is a stunt. It is very unhelpful and is completely out of kilter with the direction of travel that the criminal justice system is taking.