Hansard

I welcome the cabinet secretary to her new role.

Scotland’s justice system is on the verge of transformation, with changes that I believe will finally put victims and witnesses at its heart. For too long, our system has focused on process and penalising, with little thought having been given to the experience of the victims and witnesses going through the judicial process.

I have been a member of the Criminal Justice Committee during this session of Parliament and was a member of the Justice Committee in the previous session. I and my colleagues on those committees have heard countless harrowing stories, as Katy Clark outlined, that have shown how traumatising the judicial process can be for victims, particularly women who have experienced sexual and domestic abuse, and the lack of support for them.

Change to the system is long overdue, but change comes with challenges. With the greatest respect to our legal profession, change does not come easily when traditional, centuries-old practice comes under the microscope. However, in today’s world, doing nothing is not an option if we are to have a fairer rehabilitative justice system that is fit for modern society. That said, we need to take the legal profession with us, and a lot of work has to be done.

The publication of “Trauma Informed Justice: A Knowledge and Skills Framework for Working with Victims and Witnesses” will equip justice agencies with the skills and knowledge that are needed to reduce the retraumatisation of victims and witnesses. The framework was developed by NHS Education for Scotland as part of an overall package of funding from the Scottish Government that was worth £440,000.

The Scottish Government’s ambition, which is shared with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and other partners, identifies six key aims of a trauma-informed justice system. Practice should be informed by people with lived experience, and the system should recognise the importance of wellbeing in the workforce; recognise where people are affected by trauma and adversity; respond in ways that prevent further harm; support recovery; and be able to address inequalities and improve life chances. The Victims, Witnesses, and Justice Reform (Scotland) Bill will, if passed, be the vehicle for achieving that, and it will enable the most important transformation of the justice system in Scotland since devolution.

The bill will build on the recommendations of Lady Dorrian’s review group on improving the management of sexual offence cases by protecting the dignity of victims through an automatic lifelong right of anonymity for victims of sexual offences. It will also establish a specialist sexual offences court.

I am delighted that the bill will provide an automatic right to state-funded independent legal representation for complainers when applications are made to lead evidence on their sexual history or bad character in sexual offence cases.

In addition, a pilot of single-judge trials for cases of rape and attempted rape will take place to gather evidence on their effectiveness. I realise that that is a controversial proposal that is, as we know, being resisted by many in the legal profession. However, my colleagues and I met in private with rape and sexual abuse survivors who said that they would welcome that measure. That should be of paramount importance; we must listen to them. Research has shown that prejudice and preconceived notions of some jury members have dictated the outcome of such trials. With the proviso that the judge that is appointed to such a case must be trauma aware, I think that that approach could be a great step forward for victims.

The proposal to end the not proven verdict is one that I welcome whole-heartedly. During the 1970s, a young woman was murdered less than a mile from where I lived. The accused walked free on a not proven verdict due to a legal loophole. That met widespread astonishment and the matter has stayed in my mind since then. A shocking number of trials for rape or attempted rape result in a not proven verdict.

As convener of the cross-party groups on women, families and justice and on men’s violence against women and children, I know that urgent action is needed to improve the experiences of women and children and to ensure that the voices of victims and survivors are heard and acted on. We know that many women who are in prison for low-grade offences have suffered domestic abuse or head injuries and have mental health and addiction problems. Prison is no place for them. It wrecks families and exacerbates the existing issues that led them there in the first place. Providing early intervention and holistic support is the only way to alleviate the situation.

Equally, prison is no place for children and young people. I am pleased that the Government recognises that and is legislating to stop young people being held in adult prisons and to instead place them in holistic secure care. I do not have time to talk about the bairns’ hoose approach, but I am delighted about it.

The radical and transformative proposals that I have mentioned are a huge step in the right direction towards modernising and improving our justice system. With our greater understanding of trauma and how it impacts people—including victims, witnesses and offenders—we must look towards a humane and rehabilitative system of justice that works in Scotland.