Meeting of the Parliament 09 May 2023
Let me respond by quoting something to Mr Swinney:
“Undermining the foundations of the Scottish justice system to increase conviction rates is a dangerous approach which will create a serious risk of injustice.”
Those are not my words; they come from the president of the Law Society of Scotland, whom I know he holds in great esteem. We have also heard repeatedly from every bar association in the land and many eminent lords and ladies and other commentators that they are nervous and uneasy about the plans. It is not only the media or politicians that are fuelling this discussion—it is coming from the judiciary. The Government cannot ignore those views or warnings—in fact, it would do so at its peril.
I understand that the Government has a difficult task, but it cannot achieve reform if it does not take all the cogs of the justice system with it on that reform. If it does not, it will fail, and I would hate to be the person who says, “I told you so.”
Our amendment calls for another aspect of fairness, which I need to plug because I seek members’ support on it, which is that electronic monitoring, while someone is on bail, should not form part of any future sentence if they are found guilty. Someone on bail is untried, and for all intents and purposes they are not guilty, so any restriction that is imposed on them as a condition of bail is to keep them out of custody. It is an incentive not a punishment.
I end where I started. Warm words are welcome, but we have heard them all before—it is time to act.
I move amendment S6M-08865.1, to insert at end:
“, and believes that, through its scrutiny of the Bail and Release from Custody (Scotland) Bill, fairness for victims will be further achieved by the removal of proposals to allow for time spent by offenders on bail, under electronic monitoring, to be considered as part of their overall sentence, and that additional measures, such as affording victims a greater voice in decisions concerning the bail, remand and release of offenders, better protections around their safety once an offender is released and any other practical measures that can better protect victims and their families, ought to be positively considered by the Parliament.”
15:38Motions, questions or amendments mentioned by their reference code.