Chamber
Plenary, 26 Feb 2004
26 Feb 2004 · S2 · Plenary
Item of business
Young People
The debate is welcome. It is important that we focus on the positive contribution that the overwhelming majority of young people make to society as well as on the trouble that is caused by a minority. I commend the Executive for so doing.
It is worth reminding ourselves that for every young offender in Scotland there are many more young people who are vulnerable and neglected, who need support and not chastisement and whose needs we as a society continue to fail to meet as effectively as we should. If we supported vulnerable children better, I think that we would do much more to tackle youth crime than we will ever achieve through punitive measures alone.
To improve support for young people, we have to face up to the challenges that confront us, which include the fact that vacancies for qualified social workers and other posts in children's services are high and continue to rise. Local authorities estimate that there is a £150 million shortfall in funding for children's services. Although the number of looked-after children in Scotland represents around 1 per cent of all young people under the age of 18, there remains a shortage of foster places for youngsters who desperately need the stability and normality of family life. My colleagues will address many of those points during the debate.
The focus of the amendment in my name is deliberately narrow. The amendment calls on the Executive to "reconsider"—I stress that word—
"its decision to withdraw funding from the Airborne Initiative."
I am pleased to say that that point of view has attracted considerable cross-party support. Today is the first opportunity to debate in Parliament what is an extremely contentious and controversial decision. It is appropriate that that opportunity has been taken.
Any comprehensive strategy on young people must seek to tackle the offending behaviour of a minority of young people. That means that it must focus on preventing young people from becoming offenders in the first place. However, it must do more than that. It must also embrace the notion that a young person, once he or she starts to offend, is not necessarily a lost cause. We must always look for the best and most effective ways of addressing and challenging the offending behaviour of young people; we must find the best ways of making young people face up to their behaviour and try to change it.
It is a fact of life, however sad, that for some young offenders prison is the best and the only option. However, for many offenders prison is not the best or the most effective option, yet—proportionately—in Scotland we send more people to prison than almost any other country in Europe. The latest figures, which were published earlier this week, show that the prison population is continuing to rise—it is up another 2 per cent on the last figures. Nearly 1,000 young offenders are in Scottish prisons right now.
Sending more and more people to prison might not be a problem if it were having a positive effect on levels of crime and reoffending, but it is not. Scotland has one of the worst reoffending rates in Europe and, as we know, violent crime is increasing. The truth is that for many offenders—particularly young offenders—prison just does not work. Short-term prison sentences especially do not work. Offenders go in, they come out, they reoffend and they go straight back in through a revolving door.
That is why there must be—I know that the Executive agrees and that it is committed to this—a range of alternatives to custody for courts to consider. It is important to stress that alternatives to custody are not soft options. In fact, many alternatives to custody are much more demanding and challenging than short-term prison sentences, which do little in the way of rehabilitation.
It is worth reminding ourselves that for every young offender in Scotland there are many more young people who are vulnerable and neglected, who need support and not chastisement and whose needs we as a society continue to fail to meet as effectively as we should. If we supported vulnerable children better, I think that we would do much more to tackle youth crime than we will ever achieve through punitive measures alone.
To improve support for young people, we have to face up to the challenges that confront us, which include the fact that vacancies for qualified social workers and other posts in children's services are high and continue to rise. Local authorities estimate that there is a £150 million shortfall in funding for children's services. Although the number of looked-after children in Scotland represents around 1 per cent of all young people under the age of 18, there remains a shortage of foster places for youngsters who desperately need the stability and normality of family life. My colleagues will address many of those points during the debate.
The focus of the amendment in my name is deliberately narrow. The amendment calls on the Executive to "reconsider"—I stress that word—
"its decision to withdraw funding from the Airborne Initiative."
I am pleased to say that that point of view has attracted considerable cross-party support. Today is the first opportunity to debate in Parliament what is an extremely contentious and controversial decision. It is appropriate that that opportunity has been taken.
Any comprehensive strategy on young people must seek to tackle the offending behaviour of a minority of young people. That means that it must focus on preventing young people from becoming offenders in the first place. However, it must do more than that. It must also embrace the notion that a young person, once he or she starts to offend, is not necessarily a lost cause. We must always look for the best and most effective ways of addressing and challenging the offending behaviour of young people; we must find the best ways of making young people face up to their behaviour and try to change it.
It is a fact of life, however sad, that for some young offenders prison is the best and the only option. However, for many offenders prison is not the best or the most effective option, yet—proportionately—in Scotland we send more people to prison than almost any other country in Europe. The latest figures, which were published earlier this week, show that the prison population is continuing to rise—it is up another 2 per cent on the last figures. Nearly 1,000 young offenders are in Scottish prisons right now.
Sending more and more people to prison might not be a problem if it were having a positive effect on levels of crime and reoffending, but it is not. Scotland has one of the worst reoffending rates in Europe and, as we know, violent crime is increasing. The truth is that for many offenders—particularly young offenders—prison just does not work. Short-term prison sentences especially do not work. Offenders go in, they come out, they reoffend and they go straight back in through a revolving door.
That is why there must be—I know that the Executive agrees and that it is committed to this—a range of alternatives to custody for courts to consider. It is important to stress that alternatives to custody are not soft options. In fact, many alternatives to custody are much more demanding and challenging than short-term prison sentences, which do little in the way of rehabilitation.
In the same item of business
The Presiding Officer (Mr George Reid):
NPA
The first item of business this morning is a debate on motion S2M-943, in the name of Peter Peacock, on a better deal for young people, and on two amendments...
The Minister for Education and Young People (Peter Peacock):
Lab
I have made clear in the chamber before how much the Executive values the rich contribution that Scotland's young people make to our national life. We value ...
Fiona Hyslop (Lothians) (SNP):
SNP
The minister may be aware of the concerns that have been expressed on a number of occasions about the restrictions that the Data Protection Act 1998 could pl...
Peter Peacock:
Lab
Absolutely. We are investing, through the modernising government fund, to enable secure sharing of data among service providers while protecting people's rig...
Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP):
SNP
Although between 2001-02 and 2002-03 the number of children who were referred for offences seems to have dropped, there was an increase of more than 10 per c...
Peter Peacock:
Lab
There are many things that we seek to do for those young people, through the work of Margaret Curran and others. One reason why we introduced the fast-track ...
Mr Keith Raffan (Mid Scotland and Fife) (LD):
LD
Will the minister give way?
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton (Lothians) (Con) rose—
Con
Fiona Hyslop:
SNP
Will the minister give way?
Peter Peacock:
Lab
As I have already given way to Fiona Hyslop, I will give way to Lord James.
The Presiding Officer:
NPA
I call Fiona Hyslop.
Peter Peacock:
Lab
No, I am giving way to Lord James.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton:
Con
I am happy to allow Fiona Hyslop to intervene.
Fiona Hyslop:
SNP
Thank you very much, gentlemen. I appreciate what the Executive is saying about looked-after children. However, we seem to be setting lower standards for loo...
Peter Peacock:
Lab
I take the rare opportunity to agree with Fiona Hyslop, at least on her first point. We are saying clearly that we are not doing enough for those young peopl...
The Presiding Officer:
NPA
Not in the least this morning. We have time.
Peter Peacock:
Lab
In that case, I am happy to give way to Lord James Douglas-Hamilton.
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton:
Con
Before the minister finishes his speech, will he state his position on the mandatory drug testing of young children in schools?
Peter Peacock:
Lab
We take extremely seriously the issues of drug use and drug supply in schools. We want those issues to be tackled in the most effective ways possible. Lord J...
Mr Raffan:
LD
I wanted to ask about truancy. There are some excellent anti-truancy projects, not least the one in Alloa, of which the minister might be aware. Will he say ...
Peter Peacock:
Lab
I take this opportunity to agree with Keith Raffan. One thing that we are seeking to address much more effectively in schools is the whole business of truanc...
Karen Gillon (Clydesdale) (Lab):
Lab
The minister might be aware that there are some difficulties in accessing child psychological services. That has become an on-going problem for a number of y...
Peter Peacock:
Lab
Karen Gillon raises an important point. As part of the overall system, child psychologists are crucial at certain periods. A lack of child psychologists in t...
Nicola Sturgeon (Glasgow) (SNP):
SNP
The debate is welcome. It is important that we focus on the positive contribution that the overwhelming majority of young people make to society as well as o...
Mr Raffan:
LD
I agree with Nicola Sturgeon on the cycle of reoffending. Does she, too, think it interesting that the former chief inspectors of prisons for England and Wal...
Nicola Sturgeon:
SNP
Keith Raffan's point is extremely valuable and important. Later, I will talk about what I consider to be the formidable expert opinion in Scotland in support...
Karen Gillon:
Lab
I welcome the SNP's support for Airborne. Unfortunately, that support was not evident in the constituency when Airborne was facing a difficult move to Braidw...
Nicola Sturgeon:
SNP
Last year was the second best year for participation in the Airborne Initiative, but the fact that the programme has had problems and has found it difficult ...
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton (Lothians) (Con):
Con
My interests are as registered in the register of members' interests. I welcome the debate this morning. Having read the Executive's motion, I see that it to...
Mike Rumbles (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (LD):
LD
Lord James Douglas-Hamilton refers in his amendment to the schools passport policy. How much money from scarce public resources would go to the substantial s...