Hansard

The bill is yet another example of the Scottish Government’s—and Parliament’s—bid to implement progressive policies for the benefit of the people of Scotland.

The reforms to the 1976 act will modernise the process and make it more effective, efficient and fair. Crucially, the bill will strengthen existing legislation to include cases of deaths abroad. I will say a bit more about that later.

The bill will surely help the process and help families to come to terms with the daunting and often upsetting process of an inquiry at perhaps the most devastating time in their lives, when they have to cope with a family bereavement due to a fatal accident or sudden death.

As we all know, legislation has to be updated and to keep moving with the times; in my opinion, after 40 years, the bill will do exactly that. It will minimise delays and prevent families from being caught up in red tape, as has happened so often in the past.

The Justice Committee has asked the Government to reflect, wherever it has scope to do so, on evidence that has been received on elements of the bill. This far-reaching bill will, for the first time, allow for discretionary FAIs to be held into deaths abroad of people from Scotland whose bodies are repatriated. I am pleased that positive dialogue between the Scottish and UK Governments has brought that about. An example of the kind of case that could have a discretionary FAI is the 2009 case of Blair Jordan, who died when he fell to his death aboard the tanker British Pioneer, off the coast of Japan. Despite six years of searching for answers, his parents still believe that they do not have the full picture of how Blair died, because no independent investigation has ever been carried out. However, the bill will mean that other parents might not have to go through a similar agonising struggle for answers regarding the circumstances surrounding the death of their child.

The bill will also make provision for discretionary FAIs for Scottish service personnel who die abroad, affording them the dignity and respect that they and their families are due and, indeed, deserve.

Those are just some examples of how the bill—which will, broadly, implement the recommendations of the Cullen review—will extend the categories of death for which it is mandatory to hold an FAI. Further, it will update the definition of “legal custody” to include the death of a person while they are detained by the police, and the death of a child in secure accommodation. The bill will also empower bereaved families to ask the Lord Advocate to give written reasons for a decision not to hold an FAI, which might help with their coming to terms with their situation. The bill will also help to minimise delays at an upsetting time for families by introducing a requirement to hold a preliminary hearing in advance of an FAI and by encouraging the sharing and agreeing of evidence in advance.

The bill will allow more freedom of choice about the location and venue for an FAI. It is also important that the bill will allow FAIs to be re-opened or reconvened if new evidence comes to light and will, in cases where the new evidence is substantial, permit a completely new inquiry to be held, which will remove the feeling of finality for families who feel that vital pieces of information have not been heard at an original inquiry.

To summarise this detailed and intricate bill in a short space of time is quite difficult, but I commend it in all its aspects as I believe that it will give greater access to justice for families who lose loved ones. Through the bill, the entire FAI process will become more accountable and efficient, and less harrowing for families who are going through a traumatic time. I am sure that I am not alone in believing that where legislation can do that, it should be done. I welcome the bill as a much-needed forward-thinking and modern piece of legislation that takes into account the terrible circumstances that families can find themselves in at times in their lives. Families who are looking for answers after the tragic death of a child will no longer face agonising delays waiting for answers, and the families of people who die abroad will not face mountains of red tape and delays as they struggle to cope with their bereavement.

Again, Scotland has shown that it can lead the way in modernising the justice system. After 40 years, the bill will create a fairer and more accountable process for the people of Scotland. I have no hesitation in backing this excellent bill and I fully expect it to have support from members of all political parties across the chamber. We in the Justice Committee have been taking evidence on the bill, which will bring FAIs into the 21st century and ease the pain of so many families throughout Scotland. I commend the bill whole-heartedly.