Official Report 517KB pdf
Our next petition is PE1933, published in April 2022 and lodged by the Fornethy Survivors Group, which calls on the Scottish Parliament to urge the Scottish Government to widen access to Scotland’s redress scheme to allow Fornethy survivors to seek redress.
In its legacy report, the session 6 Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee invited us to consider reviewing what progress has been made on the issues raised by the petition when it comes to considering next steps. The previous committee indicated that that might include pursuing the request for a chamber debate, exploring whether to refer the petition to a committee that is able to undertake substantive work on the issue of redress or seeking an updated view from the Scottish Government.
In her response, the petitioner asks the committee to seek a debate on the matter. The petitioner also refers to the previous Deputy First Minister arranging a meeting between the survivors and Glasgow City Council, which could not proceed due to an active civil court case.
The response from the current Deputy First Minister states that Richard Pugh KC formally apologised at the Scottish child abuse inquiry on behalf of Glasgow City Council. The Deputy First Minister’s response also states that she plans to meet the Fornethy Survivors Group in the coming weeks to hear its views and to determine whether there are any remaining actions that she can support.
Do members have any comments or suggestions for action?
As somebody who was involved in this petition during session 6, given that the Deputy First Minister is going to meet Fornethy Survivors Group very soon, I wonder whether the committee could seek an update from the Deputy First Minister once she has met the survivors.
Absolutely. That seems a reasonable action and a reasonable position to take at this point. I know that there has been interest in having a debate. I think that there was a members’ business debate previously, and there might be interest in a further debate, which we will certainly bear in mind as well.
Can we seek an update from the petitioner?
Yes, we can seek an update from the petitioner.
I think, on that basis, we will keep the petition open. Do members agree to do so?
Members indicated agreement.