Chamber and committees

The Community Orders (Coronavirus) (Scotland) Regulations 2021 came into force at 5pm on 15 March 2021 and reduced unpaid work or other activity requirements imposed in community payback orders (CPOs) by 35% for all existing orders, except those imposed for domestic abuse, sexual offences, or stalking.

As noted in the policy note to support scrutiny of the regulations, it is estimated that the total number of outstanding unpaid work hours will be reduced by around 290,000. However, there is some uncertainty around this estimate and statistical data returns will ensure that impact is captured as accurately as possible.

The extension of the presumption against short sentence is part of an evidence-based approach to rehabilitation, both in communities and custody. A firm focus on prevention and effective community interventions has helped see Scotland’s reconviction rate fallen to its lowest level since comparable records began.

Short sentences disrupt many of the things we know are most likely to help reduce reoffending such as housing, employment, family relationships and access to health care and support. Evidence shows that individuals released from a custodial sentence of 12 months or less are reconvicted nearly twice as often as those given a Community Payback Order.

There are no current plans to change the presumption against short sentences of 12 months or less.

The Victim Statements (Prescribed Offences) (No.2) (Scotland) Order 2009 sets out the offences in relation to which a victim statement can be made. In addition, a victim statement may be made where proceedings in respect of an offence are taken or are likely to be taken in courts prescribed by the Victim Statements (Prescribed Courts) (Scotland) Order 2009.

The Scottish Government has consulted on widening the scope of the victim statement scheme and reported on this in February 2021 ( www.gov.scot/publications/widening-scope-
current-victim-statement-scheme-consultation-analysis/pages/9/ ).

As a result of this the Scottish Government brought forward the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2003 (Supplemental Provisions) Order 2021 which provides more flexible powers to prescribe courts, offences, and the form and manner of victim statements, to enable a full range of options for change to be considered.

Every organisations that applied to the first round of the Victim Surcharge Fund has received an allocation as follows:

o Victim Support Scotland - £120,000

o The Moira Fund - £12,000

o People Experiencing Trauma and Loss (PETAL) - £10,000

o Families and Friends Affected by Murder and Suicide (FAMS) - £10,000

o Manda Centre - £5,000

The Fund will re-open for applications on a regular basis.

The Scottish Government is committed to encouraging and providing support to community and individual green projects. Advice and funding support is available to community groups and organisations looking to explore their renewable energy options through the Community and Renewable Energy Scheme (CARES) delivered by Local Energy Scotland on our behalf. Since its inception CARES has supported over 600 renewable energy project across Scotland, making over £51 million in funding support available.

The Low Carbon Infrastructure Transition Programme(LCITP) has supported a number of projects to develop investment grade business cases and provide capital support for a range of low carbon demonstrator projects under an open call process. The LCITP launches funding calls periodically, these are dependent on budget demand and budget availability.

Through the publication of the Scottish Hydrogen Policy Statement in December, the Scottish Government committed to develop a focused programme of research, innovation and demonstration of technologies and systems along the entire hydrogen value chain to assist the development of the hydrogen and fuel cell sector in Scotland. To complement this and the rest of commitments made in the policy statement, £100 million funding, under the £180 million Emerging Energy Technologies Fund, will be dedicated over the next five years to help accelerate the development of the hydrogen economy in Scotland. The Hydrogen Action Plan which will be delivered this year will provide further detail on the planned approach and necessary actions to implement the policy positions outlined in the Policy Statement.

Additionally, this year we will be launching a new support framework for energy technology innovation which will include a strong focus on hydrogen.

The information is not currently available. Arrangements for managed isolation are procured and managed at a UK Government level for reasons of efficiency. The UK Government is therefore the responsible body for this data and does not currently publish it in a way that answers the question posed. In the absence of any UK publication, Public Health Scotland is considering what it might be able to publish in the coming weeks based on available data. This will be incorporated in the Public Health Scotland weekly COVID report, and will be pre-announced in due course.

Regular cleaning of frequently touched surfaces (such as door handles, bannisters, keypads, buttons) that can be found in communal areas of residential blocks can help reduce the risk of transmission of the coronavirus.

It is recommended that anything that is frequently touched, or touched by many people will need more cleaning than normal. That is why the cleaning of communal areas is an important aspect in trying to supress the spread of COVID-19.

Keeping common areas clean is part of the owners’ maintenance obligations, and for those in private owned residential blocks it would be for the owners, occupiers and landlords to determine any cleaning regime. Cleaning practices should be reviewed regularly. If a property factor or commercial cleaning firm is providing this service to homeowners, they must ensure that the safety of their workforce, occupants and the public in general is considered as a priority.

To support this endeavour, we have published guidance on cleaning and hygiene advice for multi-storey and high density flats. This can be found at Coronavirus (COVID-19):
cleaning and hygiene advice for multi-storeys and high-density flats - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) .

The Scottish Government will undertake a full rewrite of the Parole Board (Scotland) Rules 2001 this year in order to simplify and modernise them. As part of that work we intend to add a specific provision to the rules which will provide for 'failure to disclose a victim's body' as a matter, amongst others, that the Parole Board may take into account when making a decision to release. The decision on whether a person is ready to be released, taking into account all the relevant information and factors in the case, is a matter for the independent Parole Board for Scotland. The Parole Board will not release anyone it considers still poses a risk to the public.

Violence against women and girls is one of the most devastating and fundamental violations of human rights, and it is vital that perpetrators are held to account. In light of this, we have strengthened the criminal law on sexual offences, increased support to victims organisations and encouraged more victims to report their experiences.

In Scotland, to claim any victim ‘consented’ to the act resulting in their injury or death is not a defence in itself to crimes of assault to injury, culpable homicide or murder. It is understood that while there have been cases where the accused has argued that the victim consented to the acts resulting in their death, these resulted in conviction for murder or culpable homicide.

Nonetheless, I recognise that there is still a perception in some quarters that the ‘rough sex’ defence exists in Scotland and we continue to keep the law under review.

The Safer Workplaces for Public Libraries guidance was developed with the input of Public Health Scotland, as well as the public libraries sector and trade unions. The guidance is reviewed on a regular basis with the most up-to-date advice and with input from the public libraries’ sector. It emphasises the importance of undertaking robust and regular risk assessments with full input from trade unions or workforce representatives, keeping all risk mitigation measures under regular review so that workplaces continue to feel, and be, as safe as possible, as our priority remains containing the spread of the virus, saving lives and safeguarding the NHS.

It also includes specific guidance on the importance of good hand hygiene and also around book quarantining for 72 hours as per Public Health Scotland’s advice ( https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-public-libraries-guidance/pages/operational-guide-and-checklist/#hygiene ). The amount of infectious virus on any contaminated surface is likely to have decreased significantly after this time. Evidence on coronavirus transmission due to environmental contamination is reviewed as we learn to live with this still relatively new virus.

The guidance further states that under level 4, staff who are able to work from home, must do so wherever possible, unless they are essential to support permitted services e.g. click and collect and bookable IT services.

The guidance also includes a compliance self-assessment tool which workplaces are encouraged to use: Coronavirus (COVID-19): compliance self-assessment tool - gov.scot (www.gov.scot).

Finally, to accompany the revised Strategic Framework announced by the First Minister, officials are undertaking an additional full review of this guidance.