Meeting of the Parliament (Hybrid) 10 June 2021
I am very pleased to open for the Scottish Conservatives in my first justice debate. I took on the education brief just a month before the pandemic hit, and we saw 15 months of unprecedented upheaval in the system. I now take on the justice portfolio 15 months into the same pandemic which, equally, has shifted the floor from beneath the feet of our justice system.
I pay tribute to my predecessor, Liam Kerr, and I wish the new cabinet secretary well—the justice portfolio truly is a tough gig. Those in the chamber who I have worked with in the past will know that, where there is common ground, I will seek to find it, and where there is not, I will debate respectfully and make my case. However, after reading today’s motion and amendments, I am confident that there will be common ground to find on many issues, although perhaps not all.
I do not expect agreement at decision time today, but I want to kick off the debate constructively. I accept that the events of the past year have created unexpected conundrums for us all. We are not alone in seeing the emergence of criminal court backlogs, but Covid only exacerbated an existing problem in Scotland. Nearly 50 per cent of the current trial backlog existed pre-pandemic. We are not alone in having a correlation between the emergency laws that we passed and additional workload for our front-line police, nor are we alone in being forced to innovate to find new ways of allowing justice to proceed. While we were tucked up in our houses, our front-line police, ambulance, fire and prison staff continued their work, nose to nose with danger. We all owe them a huge debt of gratitude.
It is interesting that no one has sought to remove any words from the Government motion for debate, but plenty would be added if amendments are agreed to. Let me make two observations on that. First, the motion focuses narrowly on the effects of the pandemic, with no acceptance of some of the pre-existing problems that we faced. Secondly, it refers to plans to reform Scottish justice and a promise to make it fit for purpose in a modern world, but it does not explain how.
The Scottish Conservatives have proudly stood on a platform for clear reform of the justice system that resets the balance of focus on victims and their views and rights, and we make no apology for that. The Government motion states that the interests of victims should remain at the heart of necessary reforms. I agree with that, but those cannot just be words; we must follow through on that commitment.
Our amendment is a starting point. We will introduce a victims bill, which will contain specific actions that the Government could take right now to shift the balance. The first of the two has been discussed in this place already: Michelle’s law and Suzanne’s law. It is important that we refresh our memories on those. Michelle Stewart was murdered by John Wilson, who had been approved for a temporary release and allowed back into the community after serving just nine years in prison. Michelle’s family was informed of his release by letter and had no say whatsoever in the matter. Her sister talked at the time about
“the prospect of seeing my sister’s killer on the street, on the bus or in the shops”
and said:
“It is unbelievably painful.”
They asked us why that was allowed to happen, but we did not have an answer for them then and I do not think that we have an answer for them today. Michelle’s law will put that injustice right.
Suzanne Pilley was killed by her partner in 2010 and he refused to say where her body lies. Margaret Fleming, Lynda Spence, Arlene Fraser—the list goes on and on. Suzanne’s law would ensure that those who refuse to reveal the location of the bodies of their victims will not be eligible for parole until they do so. Sadly, it is too often the case that the legislative reform that is needed is named after individual victims—women who have often suffered at the hands of evil.
That point was validly raised by Labour’s amendment, which seeks to find a solution to the trauma of how we process domestic abuse and sexual violence cases in our courts. However, I cannot support Labour’s amendment, because we should do that issue justice by holding a proper debate into the findings of Lady Dorrian’s recommendations, of which there are many. I would like to know the implications of those recommendations and we should do that as a Parliament positively and constructively.
These are all very sombre issues to grapple with, but it would send an immediate and powerful nod to victims in Scotland that we as a Parliament are on their side if we make speedy progress on them.