Chamber and committees

I am sorry, Ms Regan, but I am going to have to move on. I call Rachael Hamilton. I know that Pauline McNeill would then like to come in for what will have to be our final questions.

If I can just come in—

I am sorry, but we must move on. I bring in Rona Mackay, to be followed by Pauline McNeill.

I will come back to you if we have time. John Swinney is next.

Next week, we will return to the Victims, Witnesses, and Justice Reform (Scotland) Bill, with evidence from survivors of sexual crimes with experience of the criminal justice system, and from victims and survivors organisations. That concludes our meeting.

I am sorry to interrupt. Please keep your response as brief as possible, as I will have to move on after Mr Swinney’s final question.

Our first item of business is consideration of the Scottish Prison Service’s newly updated policy on the management of transgender prisoners in Scotland and of the two associated Scottish statutory instruments, which are on our agenda today. I refer members to papers 1 and 2.

We are joined by the Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs; Teresa Medhurst, who is the chief executive of the Scottish Prison Service; and Scottish Government officials David Doris, who is the prisons policy team leader, and Jamie MacQueen, who is a solicitor in the Scottish Government’s legal directorate. I welcome our witnesses.

Before we start, I want to make it clear that we are considering the updated policy on transgender prisoners because I recognise the public interest in the matter and because several committee members indicated that they wished to do so. The committee does not have a formal role, as such, in approving the new policy; that is not what we are doing today. The purpose of the meeting is to hear more about the content of and rationale for the new policy. The policy changes have triggered the laying of the two SSIs that are on our agenda today, so the committee’s formal role involves taking a view on whether to recommend to the Parliament that the SSIs come into force or that they be annulled.

I invite Ms Medhurst to make a short opening statement on the new policy and the SSIs, and then I will ask the cabinet secretary whether she would like to add anything.

Thank you very much, Ms Medhurst. Cabinet secretary, would you like to add anything?

I am sorry, but I have to move things on.

That is fine. Can you confirm that you wish to withdraw your motions on both SSIs?