Meeting of the Parliament 28 June 2023
The Government recognises the great sensitivity of the matters that we are discussing today, and it has proceeded on that basis at all times. In essence, the proposed amendments from the UK Government have not gone far enough to remedy the issues that were raised by the Scottish Government and its committees when it was initially recommended, in October 2022, that the Scottish Parliament should not pass the legislative consent motion on the bill.
The amendments that the UK Government tabled on 8 June, although they are welcome, do not alleviate the three major concerns that we have about the bill. The Scottish Government cannot support a bill that reduces or eliminates the ability of victims of crime to seek justice through our court system, and that position is backed by the Scottish Parliament’s Criminal Justice Committee.
We should not forget that the bill will provide the commission with the power to grant immunity from prosecution for some of the most serious offences, including abuse, torture and murder. The decision on whether to prosecute someone for those offences should remain with the Lord Advocate, and to remove the decision-making process from that office and place it with another body—