Committee
Criminal Justice Committee 18 March 2026 [Draft]
18 Mar 2026 · S6 · Criminal Justice Committee
Item of business
Subordinate Legislation
Antisocial Behaviour (Fixed Penalty Offences) (Miscellaneous Amendment) (Scotland) Order 2026 [Draft]
Thank you very much. The report will be published shortly.As this is our last scheduled meeting, I thank the minister and her officials for all their contributions to the committee over the past five years—it is greatly appreciated.That concludes our business in public. Before we move into private session, I take the opportunity to thank all the members of the committee—my colleagues, past and present—for their excellent work during this session of Parliament and for the very collegiate way in which they have approached the business before us.I also extend our thanks to our wonderful team of clerks and our wider group of staff who have supported us, including the Scottish Parliament information centre, the official report, broadcasting, the participation and communities team, media teams, security, catering and anyone else whom I might have forgotten.Finally, I thank all the witnesses who have given evidence to us over the past few years, particularly those for whom it has been challenging to come to talk to us about their experiences, some of which have been serious and traumatic. It has meant a great deal to the committee and has greatly contributed to our work.For the very last time, before I start to cry, we move into private session—Fulton, I will bring you in first.
In the same item of business
The Convener
SNP
Our next item of business is an oral evidence-taking session on an affirmative Scottish statutory instrument that has been relaid by the Scottish Government....
The Minister for Victims and Community Safety (Siobhian Brown)
SNP
Good morning. First, I want to take the time to apologise to the committee for the circumstances that bring me back here today. I appreciate that time is of ...
The Convener
SNP
Thank you, minister. The committee is grateful for the update that you have provided, for the explanation that you have given and for some of the detail on t...
Sharon Dowey (South Scotland) (Con)
Con
Good morning, minister, and thank you for the opening statement.You were previously before us on 18 February. As you said, some of the figures in the SSI wer...
Siobhian Brown
SNP
We wanted to reform this part of the fixed-penalty notice regime, which is why the SSI was laid. Obviously, there has been a mistake in the data that was col...
Robert Wyllie (Scottish Government)
As the minister described, Police Scotland came to us with a request to add section 38 of the 2010 act to the fixed-penalty notice regime. We then engaged in...
Siobhian Brown
SNP
For clarity, I note that my understanding is that the mistake arose because of the way in which officials interpreted the data, which does not fully reflect ...
Sharon Dowey
Con
The increase in the fine was not an issue at committee last week—I think that we all agreed on that. Similarly, adding in the extra offence was not an issue,...
Siobhian Brown
SNP
I will have to bring in officials to answer that, because my understanding from my meeting with officials before we came into the committee is that the SSI w...
Sharon Dowey
Con
I am still looking for an answer. The information that was given to you was obtained by officials in meetings. You have taken it as fact. Despite having the ...
Siobhian Brown
SNP
I do not know whether Bob Wyllie or Fiona McDiarmid wants to come in.
Robert Wyllie
The proposal to remove offences was suggested by Government officials. That is the answer to your previous question.
Sharon Dowey
Con
On the basis that they had not been used for two years.
Robert Wyllie
Yes, that is right. The question was asked, “Is this in line with current practice? Are these offences needed at the moment?” We proposed that they be remove...
Siobhian Brown
SNP
I have been the Minister for Victims and Community Safety for close to three years and this has never happened before, so it is not something that happens al...
Sharon Dowey
Con
Not that we are aware of. I hope that there will be no more similar instances.On 18 February, we were told that Police Scotland did not want the offence of b...
Siobhian Brown
SNP
I am sorry—what did you say?
Sharon Dowey
Con
You told us that Police Scotland did not want the offence of being drunk in charge of a child to be removed from the ASB FPN regime—that is in the Official R...
Siobhian Brown
SNP
I cannot remember Police Scotland saying that—those remarks might have been misinterpreted.
The Convener
SNP
Is that question relevant to the instrument that we are dealing with today?
Sharon Dowey
Con
The minister told the committee:“When we engaged with the police on the instrument, it was not an issue that they raised, but they wanted that offence kept o...
Robert Wyllie
I think that that is a misunderstanding. Police Scotland are quite clear that being drunk in charge of a child is not an offence in relation to which it woul...
Sharon Dowey
Con
Quite a number of cases involving that offence went to court—I saw that in the updated figures.
Jamie Hepburn
SNP
What has happened is unfortunate, but I am inclined to recognise that it is unusual. I know from my own experience that things can go wrong, but it does not ...
Siobhian Brown
SNP
The first part of the question is about what will happen moving forward. I cannot speak on behalf of the Government in the next parliamentary session, but we...
Jamie Hepburn
SNP
I am not looking for massive detail, but can we get some sense of what that looks like at this stage and then maybe you can follow up with a bit more detail ...
Siobhian Brown
SNP
Robert, do you want to speak about what safeguards are in place to ensure that this does not happen again?
Robert Wyllie
I can speak about the broader review that this work is going to be folded into. Officials are undertaking site visits with local authorities and community po...
Jamie Hepburn
SNP
Will the Scottish Government’s legal directorate be more involved? It sounds to me as though the issue is that there has not been enough cross-reference to d...
Siobhian Brown
SNP
I note that some of the other proposals for reform to the regime are going to be more complex and will involve questions of principle and different penalty l...