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Every contribution to the Official Report — chamber and committee — searchable in one place. Pulled from data.parliament.scot, indexed for full-text search, linked through to every MSP.

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Showing 43 of 2,354,908 contributions. Latest 30 days: 0. Coverage: 12 May 1999 — 25 Mar 2026.

Oliver Mundell (Dumfriesshire) (Con) Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

I have a question on charitable trusts. Some of the legal stakeholders, including the Law Society, have expressed surprise that chapter 5 of the bill, which concerns how long trusts will last in practice, does not apply to charitable trusts. Having heard the comments on this t...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

I am interested in the point that Michael Paparakis made about there being relatively few cases at the moment. Clearly, the bill envisages a greater role for courts in the administration of trusts. There will be several new opportunities to involve the court in trust matters. ...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

That would be helpful. It feeds into a wider issue—one which will potentially be referenced in other questions—about how people navigate the legislation, bearing in mind that a lot of the individuals who interact with it are not going to be legal professionals. Many people put...

Oliver Mundell (Dumfriesshire) (Con) Con Chamber

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

I begin by apologising to members for participating remotely. I had planned to be in Parliament in person, but I have had flu symptoms and a temperature overnight and felt it best not to bring that to the chamber. I say at the outset that Scottish Conservatives will support t...

Oliver Mundell Con Chamber

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

I share that concern, which is something that the committee thought about, and I know that other committee members are also concerned. The landscape is complicated, which is why one of the key recommendations in our report is that good guidance should be available. We recognis...

Oliver Mundell (Dumfriesshire) (Con) Con Chamber

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill

I am pleased to speak in the debate and to confirm that the Scottish Conservatives will support the bill at decision time. As the minister outlined, this is the first major overhaul of trust law in a century and, having listened to the evidence that has been brought forward, I...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

You would recognise the risk for parliamentarians and the Parliament in seeking to proceed with the legislation. If you read its submission as a whole, the Law Society is generally quite discursive about the bill. When I see words like “severe danger of a conflict of interes...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

The policy concern stems partly from the fact that lots of people who interact with trusts might not be familiar with the law and court proceedings. I guess that the point is that, if someone was looking at taking on responsibilities for a small charitable trust or interacting...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Touching on that point, but more broadly, on 9 May we heard from legal academics including Professor Gretton and Yvonne Evans, who said that, in practice, a solicitor would just “draft around” a 25-year provision. This question may be for Chris Sheldon and Mike Blair: are we w...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

I want to push back on that a wee bit. It has been recognised that, for many small trusts across Scotland, given the geography, it would cost them considerable time and expense to come to Edinburgh to have their case heard, and that that might be a barrier for them. Have you l...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Coming back to the points that your officials have made, minister, do you think that this has been a missed opportunity? Some people have been in touch with the committee to say that there could have been a wholesale codification of trust law. Given that we have not had major ...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Judicial Factors (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

We have talked a bit about the similarity of this legislation and the law around trusts. Section 17 covers the investment power of a judicial factor in respect of the estate. Following the approach in the Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024, do witnesses think that the b...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Moveable Transactions (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

I guess that the question is whether people would be borrowing at a lower interest rate than that which they might get from an unregulated lender. If people are desperate, we would be cutting off any access at all to finance for them. I am not saying that including consumers i...

Oliver Mundell (Dumfriesshire) (Con) Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

I will ask about the codification of trust law. The Law Society of Scotland and the Scottish Law Agents Society have expressed their support for the bill overall, but expressed regret that it is not a complete codification of trust law. For the committee’s benefit, what did yo...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

To be absolutely clear, it is a deliberate approach.

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Thank you for that. I will also ask about the role of the Court of Session compared with that of local sheriff courts. I know that there are some expanded powers for sheriff courts. Will you explain the policy thinking around retaining the Court of Session as the main court fo...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Do you expect that there will be more legal action as a result of the bill or could the bill reduce the amount of litigation? Is there sufficient capacity in the sheriff court to deal with such cases?

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

The second part of my question was about whether you think that there is sufficient capacity and expertise to handle that.

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

I want to ask about litigation expenses and, in particular, the Law Society’s concerns about section 65. The Law Society was quite outspoken on that, citing “a severe danger of a conflict of interest” and describing section 65 as “quite a radical provision”, which, it su...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

The Law Society suggests that the starting point, or the principle, should be that trustees should not have any personal liability unless it can be shown that it is fair for them to be liable, so it is suggesting flipping that point around. Without summarising its position unf...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

The submission is on the Parliament’s website, but I am sure that the committee clerks would be happy to send it to you. I am sure that, like me, the committee would be interested if you wanted to review the Law Society’s points. Having seen many Law Society submissions on var...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

I will ask a final question about something that I have thought of as you have been answering questions. Would there be merit in putting in the bill an exemption from personal liability when people act in a charitable capacity or when a trust is relatively modest? 11:45

Oliver Mundell (Dumfriesshire) (Con) Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

I am interested in sections 25 and 26. Concern has been expressed to the committee that trustees’ duties to provide information to beneficiaries and potential beneficiaries under those sections are too onerous and that the extent of the duties is uncertain. Do you want to shar...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

I want to move on to section 61 of the bill, which gives power to the beneficiaries and others to apply to the court to alter the purposes of a family trust where there is a material change of circumstances. The section sets out the default position that that power cannot be u...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

For clarity, are you saying that you were not convinced by the evidence that we heard from the Law Society, Yvonne Evans or the firm Turcan Connell that a change is needed in that respect?

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

I also want to ask about the balance of powers between the sheriff court and the Court of Session. Some legal stakeholders have told the committee that it would be helpful if the bill offered more choice for litigants between the Court of Session and the sheriff court for trus...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Does the Government does not have any strong views beyond what the SLC has stated?

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

I will leave it for now, convener.

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

In the same evidence session, we also heard concerns that people might try to draft around the provision or include clauses to create the flexibility to make changes outwith that period. Multiple witnesses at that session seemed to agree that that would not be desirable. Do yo...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Let me push a little further on this question. I am, as I have said in previous questioning, concerned by the Law Society’s written submission. It describes this provision as “radical” with “real issues”, saying that it is not standard and that it creates “a severe danger of...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Are you happy to approach the Law Society directly about wording?

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Okay. The Faculty of Advocates and numerous other legal stakeholders have said that they think that the power in section 67 to give direction to the court needs to be much wider than it currently is. Having heard those views, do you agree that it would be useful to add to the...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

I do not want to put words in your mouth, but for clarity, you think that it would be worth restating that in the bill. You are willing to look at putting something in the bill.

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Briefly, convener. I had planned to ask about the codification of trust law later, but would you rather that I asked about that now?

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

So you do not think that the benefits would outweigh the negatives.

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

More broadly, though, it is not the Scottish Government’s position to move towards as much codification within the civil law as possible.

Oliver Mundell (Dumfriesshire) (Con) Con Chamber

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3

In this debate on the first group of amendments, I put on record that the Scottish Conservatives will support all the stage 3 amendments. I recognise that the minister has listened to stakeholders and the Delegated Powers and Law Reform Committee in order to strengthen the bil...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Judicial Factors (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

That is helpful; the drafting probably speaks to the policy intent. I also want to ask about section 19, which covers the investment power of a judicial factor in respect of the estate. Following the approach in the Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024, should it be made...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Judicial Factors (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

For example, a factor who is put in place might also be thinking about the organisation’s reputation. It might be that, in strict financial terms, they could get a better return on investment by going with option 1, whereas option 2 might produce a lower short-term return but ...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Judicial Factors (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

I hear the point. What I meant was whether there is a practical current example where the issue has come up in relation to judicial factors. Have the Faculty of Advocates and other organisations come across examples that have informed your views, or are they based on the law o...

Oliver Mundell Con Committee

Judicial Factors (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

That is helpful. I guess that also ties in, to a certain extent, with some of the questions about missing persons and about where non-financial criteria fit in the legislation. There is some overlap in the charity sections, with the potential for people to be judicial factors ...

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Committee

Delegated Powers and Law Reform Committee 06 June 2023

06 Jun 2023 · S6 · Delegated Powers and Law Reform Committee

Item of business

Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1

Mundell, Oliver Con Dumfriesshire Watch on SPTV

I have a question on charitable trusts. Some of the legal stakeholders, including the Law Society, have expressed surprise that chapter 5 of the bill, which concerns how long trusts will last in practice, does not apply to charitable trusts. Having heard the comments on this topic, do you think that there is a case for reconsidering the exclusion of charitable trusts from the scope of chapter 5?

In the same item of business

The Convener SNP

Under agenda item 2, we will take evidence on the Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill from Siobhian Brown, the Minister for Victims and Community Safety. W...

The Minister for Victims and Community Safety (Siobhian Brown) SNP

Good morning, convener and committee. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak to you about the Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Bill, which is the s...

The Convener SNP

I will open the questions, the first of which is on section 104 orders. We faced a similar situation with the Moveable Transactions (Scotland) Bill. Will you...

Siobhian Brown SNP

Yes. So far, we have had positive engagement with the officials at the Office of the Advocate General, the Scotland Office and other United Kingdom Governmen...

The Convener SNP

A couple of weeks ago, at the conveners’ group meeting, I asked the First Minister whether he thought that some type of protocol regarding section 104 orders...

Siobhian Brown SNP

Yes, I think that that could be worth while. Perhaps an official might have more detail on that. Do you want to come in, Michael?

Michael Paparakis (Scottish Government)

Certainly. I am aware, convener, that you raised the question with the First Minister, and I think that he agreed to take it away for further consideration. ...

The Convener SNP

Assuming that the bill is passed by the Parliament, can you indicate how long you think that it will take for any associated section 104 order to come into f...

Siobhian Brown SNP

The Scottish Government’s aim is to bring the bill’s provisions and the section 104 order on pension trusts into force at the same time, as that would have t...

The Convener SNP

Thank you. Over to Mercedes Villalba.

Mercedes Villalba (North East Scotland) (Lab) Lab

Good morning, minister. I want to move us on to section 75 of the bill and discuss definitions of “incapable” and “mental disorder”. The committee has heard ...

Siobhian Brown SNP

I thank Mercedes Villalba for her question. The bill uses a familiar definition of “incapable” that is very similar, but not identical, to the one found in t...

Mercedes Villalba Lab

Jeremy Balfour (Lothian) (Con) Con

Good morning to you, minister, and to your officials. I wonder whether I can just briefly follow up that point. I think that, in the evidence that we took, t...

Siobhian Brown SNP

I will bring in Michael Paparakis, if I may.

Michael Paparakis

I am happy to answer that. As this is an area that we have yet to explore, we have not fully worked out what the advantages and disadvantages might be. Obvio...

Jeremy Balfour Con

Okay. Thank you for that.

The Convener SNP

Jeremy, just before you go on to your other question, I should add that one concern that the committee has heard quite clearly, certainly in the evidence tha...

Michael Paparakis

Certainly. As the minister has pointed out, it is something that we are willing to work with the committee and the SLC on to make sure that the definition in...

The Convener SNP

Thank you. I am sorry, Jeremy.

Jeremy Balfour Con

No, convener—that was very helpful. On sections 7 and 12, we have heard quite a lot of evidence, particularly last week, that it would be difficult for trus...

Siobhian Brown SNP

On the risks of abuse, section 7 contains a number of safeguards against abuse of the power by trustees. First, a majority of the trustees must agree before ...

Michael Paparakis

On the procedure with regard to obtaining a report, you have heard from stakeholders that, when decisions have to be made, there is sometimes a need to move ...

Jeremy Balfour Con

The concern that we heard in evidence was about how to know that someone was incapable. People’s capacity can come and go, and the worry is that the decision...

Michael Paparakis

I come back to the minister’s point about the safeguards against abuse. I would also reiterate my point that the power in section 7 is not mandatory—it does ...

Jeremy Balfour Con

The problem is that they need the individual’s consent to get a medical report, which might mean the trustees having to persuade the person in question, who ...

Michael Paparakis

Again, there are other options in the bill for removing a trustee. Trustees have the power to apply to the court and, in certain cases, beneficiaries also ha...

Jeremy Balfour Con

Okay—I will move on. The Scottish Law Commission told us in evidence that an aggrieved trustee who wanted to challenge a decision on their capacity could us...

Siobhian Brown SNP

Michael Paparakis can give you the history on that.

Michael Paparakis

If the committee wanted to make a recommendation in that respect, we would be happy to consider it. Ultimately, though, the Scottish Law Commission did not f...