Chamber and committees

The availablestatistics on court proceedings and recorded crime cannot be combined in anymeaningful way to derive rates of conviction. However, the available statisticsdo illustrate that the conviction rate for rape, in particular, is very low.

The prosecutionof rape presents a particular challenge. It can be very difficult to obtaincorroborated evidence to convince a jury of the accused’s guilt beyondreasonable doubt. Prosecutors cannot raise proceedings where there is insufficientevidence in law to do so. In cases where the accused does not deny the act ofsexual intercourse but maintains that the complainer consented, the trial mayfocus entirely on the question of whether the complainer consented to sexualintercourse with the accused.

The ScottishGovernment is committed to addressing the low conviction rate for rape andserious sexual offences. It is clearly very important to have a robust legalframework that reflects the values of modern society. That is why we haveannounced that we will introduce a Bill on rape and sexual offences in thelight of the Scottish Law Commission’s forthcoming report.

It is equallyimportant that we ensure that cases are handled as effectively as possible. TheCrown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service’s Review of the Investigation andProsecution of Rape and Sexual Offences recommended improved specialisttraining and guidance to prosecutors. The implementation programme is wellunderway with 18 recommendations having been implemented and work ongoingtowards full implementation by June 2009.

NHS Quality ImprovementScotland published a national overview in 2006 thatreviewed services across the country against four Quality Indicators for LearningDisabilities selected as strongly representative of key elements of hospital closure.These were making sure services are in place to meet people’s needs when hospitalsare no longer there; in-patient services for those who need them, and ensuring thetransition into the community is planned in partnership with people with learningdisabilities, their carers and local communities and involving people in decisionsabout their lives.

They found improvementsto all of these areas and also set out a number of recommendations for continuedimprovements to offer better services for children and adults with learning disabilitiesand their carers.

The published Partial Regulatory Impact Assessment for the Single Survey (page 33) concluded that the provision of Single Survey by sellers would be unlikely to inflate house prices artificially. House prices are more likely to be influenced by macroeconomic factors such as interest rates.

The partial Regulatory Impact Assessment is available at:

http://www.communitiesscotland.gov.uk/stellent/groups/public/documents/webpages/cs_014679.hcsp.

The draft regulationswhich were the subject of recent consultation did not include proposals for specific legal liabilitiesfor a buyer or a seller in relation to a property sale questionnaire (PSQ), giventhat it was expected that PSQs would be referred to by solicitors acting on behalfof buyers in the missives of sale as a matter of conveyancing practice.

The draftregulations which were the subject of recent consultation provide forstrict criteria for approved providers and the intention is that they shouldmeet or match the professional standards, liability and redress provided bychartered surveyors. For a buyer to rely on a single survey, the provider’sterms and conditions of contract would have to make suitable provision and ifnecessary that would be ensured by legislation.

The draftregulations which were the subject of recent consultation proposed thatevery seller who marketed their property for sale would be under a duty toprovide, upon request, a single survey and a property sale questionnaire, whichwould form a purchaser’s information pack (PIP). They did not propose that PIPswould be provided free or at a reduced rate to sellers on low incomes, butrather that the market would decide the fees for PIPs.

The draftregulations which were the subject of recent consultation proposed that thesingle survey should be no more than 12 weeks old when the property was firstmarketed. However, there was no proposed time limit on the information in the singlesurvey. Rather, it was suggested that this should be a matter for the market,reflecting the need for flexibility to address the circumstances of particularcases.

The offers subject to survey approach helps, in most cases, to address the issue of multiple valuations in the current buying and selling process. However, the approach also reduces the degree of certainty in the transaction process, which has been a key strength of the Scottish house buying and selling process over many years. It is important to consider the balance of arguments between the offers subject to survey approach and the single survey in deciding the way ahead.

Research carriedout by Tribal Consulting Limited titled The Potential Impact of the SingleSurvey on the Property Industry’ examined the ability of the surveyingsector in Scotland to handle the increase in demand for surveying services fromthe introduction of the single survey. The research concluded that the existingcapacity of the surveying sector would be sufficient.The researchreport is available at: http://www.communitiesscotland.gov.uk/stellent/groups/public/documents/webpages/pubcs_017893.pdf.

The draft regulationswhich were the subject of recent consultation proposed that a seller would be allowed toalter the information contained in a property sale questionnaire.