Justice 2 Committee, 28 Nov 2001
Meeting date: Wednesday, November 28, 2001
Official Report
225KB pdf
Scottish Parliament Justice 2 Committee Wednesday 28 November 2001 (Morning)
[The Convener opened the meeting in private at 09:48]
Meeting continued in public.
I remind members that the meeting of the Parliament will start at 12 o'clock today, which is earlier than usual. This meeting of the Justice 2 Committee will have to wind up by 11.55 am at the latest to allow members to run up to the chamber.
I have received apologies from George Lyon. Members should take note of Mary Mulligan's rise to the position of Deputy Minister for Health and Community Care. I am sure that committee members wish her all the best in her new post. She will not be with us this morning, but I will pass on to her the committee's regards.
I have a few matters to report to the committee. Last week, we discussed scrutiny of the Marriage (Scotland) Bill. The Justice 1 Committee has also considered the issue and has decided that it will not report on the bill to the Local Government Committee at stage 1. The bill is procedural and makes no substantial change to family law. I suggest that the Justice 2 Committee does not need to become involved in scrutinising the bill, although we might want to consider the stage 1 report to satisfy ourselves that the bill makes no substantial changes to family law. If the bill were to make such changes, that would be a matter for the justice committees.
Members have among their papers a submission from the Crown Office and a letter from Andrew Normand, the Crown Agent. The document updates members on the audit that is being conducted of pressure at the Crown Office. Obviously the Crown Office has issued a press release about the audit, as it was covered in the news this morning. I propose to put the document, which makes for interesting reading and which will be helpful to our inquiry, on the agenda for a later meeting. That will give members the opportunity to read the document. The contents of the paper bear out our decision to embark on an inquiry into the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service.
I ask members to note that I have received a letter from the Minister for Justice, who advises that the working group that is reviewing legal practice and information provision in Scotland published its report on 26 November. The minister has welcomed the report, which makes an important contribution to the debate on access to justice. He will respond formally once he has considered the group's findings. If members have questions about the report, we can revisit it at a later date.