Official Report 740KB pdf
Grooming Gangs Inquiry
Taylor was a vulnerable child in local authority care in Glasgow. She should have been protected, but she was preyed upon by grooming gangs. Last night, she wrote to John Swinney, telling him that she and her friends were plied with alcohol and drugs and were sexually abused by at least 10 Pakistani men.
Taylor and other victims say that there must be a grooming gangs inquiry in Scotland. They say that it is the only way to uncover the scale of the abuse, establish why it went unchecked and ensure that it cannot continue. Will John Swinney agree to the inquiry that is being asked for by Taylor and other victims?
First, I confirm to Russell Findlay that I have received the letter from Taylor. I express to the Parliament my admiration of her courage to speak out on such an important and very difficult subject. I am deeply saddened to hear of any cases of sexual abuse. As the Parliament knows, I have taken significant action during my term in office as a minister to ensure that the issue has been addressed.
The Government is undertaking work already through the national child sexual abuse and exploitation strategic group, which is looking at previous inquiries, evidence and practices to establish what further actions and recommendations are required. Police Scotland is actively reviewing current and historical child abuse investigations to determine what issues would need to be addressed in any potential inquiry. The Government has remained open to the question of a grooming gangs inquiry, but a series of steps is being taken to explore those issues at the moment.
It is vital that any accusation of criminal conduct is drawn to the attention of the police, as Police Scotland has a duty to address such complaints by making inquiries.
Taylor’s social work files allegedly show that Police Scotland failed to investigate. She said:
“It made me feel sick to my stomach. It’s like they didn’t even bother to ask any questions. That’s the bit that gets me the most, because it could have been stopped, and it never was.”
Another grooming gang victim, Fiona Goddard, was trafficked from England to Glasgow and was raped by groups of men. She said that, as far back as 2014, police in West Yorkshire were
“well aware of links to Scotland, but clearly no one bothered to investigate further.”
Victims do not trust that what happened to them will be fully investigated by organisations that they believe turned a blind eye or even engaged in a cover-up.
Has John Swinney spoken to Police Scotland about those new allegations, and does he believe that the actions of the authorities should be independently examined?
In relation to Taylor’s case, Police Scotland has said:
“A complaint about the police was received in September 2025. The complainer was spoken to and we confirmed information had been passed to us, but since no report was made to police in reference to any crime, this complaint did not fit the criteria as a complaint about the police. The complainer was advised she should make a report to police if she had been a victim of a crime. The complainer confirmed she was happy to have the complaint closed with this advice.”
I put that on the record simply to say that it is vital that anybody who believes that they have been the victim of a sexual crime comes forward to the police and makes a complaint. My expectation as First Minister is that such a complaint would be taken deadly seriously by the police and would be investigated.
On the question of trust in how such matters are handled, we have seen examples of extensive prosecutions for sexual misconduct and childhood sexual abuse in Scotland. A range of prosecutions have been successfully taken forward by the police and the Crown, which are determined to address the very serious issues that Mr Findlay puts to me. I hope that that gives victims of such crimes confidence that, if they come forward, their concerns will be properly and fully investigated by Police Scotland, which would be my expectation as First Minister.
Any attempt to shift the blame on to victims for how and when such crimes are reported is highly questionable. Taylor was a child. The authorities knew about the crimes at the time, on the basis of social work reports.
Of course, grooming gangs are not confined to any one community. Earlier this year, a group of white men and women were jailed for the horrific abuse of children in Glasgow. Last month, a Romanian gang was convicted of abusing 10 young women in Dundee. This is not a historical problem; it is happening today. The number of reports of online child sexual abuse made to Police Scotland has more than doubled in the past year alone.
How can John Swinney hope to stop child abuse now, when he will not support a full and fearless investigation into the industrial-scale abuse of recent years?
First, nothing that I am saying is about shifting the blame—I say that respectfully to the Parliament. I am simply putting on the record factual information that Police Scotland has provided to me.
My parliamentary record demonstrates that I am prepared to ensure that significant efforts are made to address abusive conduct in our society. The Scottish child abuse inquiry was sponsored under my leadership as education secretary and as Deputy First Minister for many years, and it does vital work in making sure that the voices of victims are heard loud and clear in our society.
On the question of online child abuse, I was clear in my answer to Martin Whitfield last week in the Parliament that I want to make sure that every step that the Government and other authorities in Scotland can take to tackle online child abuse is taken. The efforts that have been made at the Gartcosh crime campus, under the auspices of Police Scotland, have been lauded around the world as an example of integrated proceedings involving multiple agencies. We aim to ensure that organised crime networks in Scotland are shattered as a consequence of our efforts. I assure Mr Findlay of our determination to carry out all that activity.
As I said to Mr Whitfield last week, we are also determined to work collaboratively to ensure that a legislative approach is in place that uses the powers of the United Kingdom—powers that the Scottish Parliament does not have—to tackle the culture of online abuse, which is attacking the very fabric of childhood in Scotland today as a consequence of the lawlessness that is perpetrated by online agencies.
The First Minister talks about his parliamentary record. That record shows that, just weeks ago, he voted against my party’s attempts to instigate a grooming gangs inquiry in Scotland.
In a previous answer, the First Minister said that the national child sexual abuse and exploitation strategic group is looking at these issues. However, victims such as Taylor are concerned because the same authorities that failed them sit on that Government group, and they fear that it is little more than another Scottish National Party talking shop.
In July, the group discussed Baroness Casey’s report on grooming gangs elsewhere in the United Kingdom. The minutes of that meeting state:
“there is no current evidence that the issues identified in Casey are presenting in the same way in Scotland”.
In the light of the available evidence, that claim is patently untrue. Does John Swinney agree that grooming gangs are a problem in Scotland, not just elsewhere?
Mr Findlay is not setting out properly the effect of the amendment that his colleague Liam Kerr lodged to the Victims, Witnesses, and Justice Reform (Scotland) Bill, because all that that amendment would have required was the victims and witnesses commissioner, who has not yet been appointed, to undertake a report to consider whether any further action was required in that respect. Therefore, that is not something that could happen today. The commissioner would have to first be appointed and then consider whether it was appropriate to take any action, so it is a complete and utter distortion to say that there was a grooming gangs inquiry proposal in front of the Parliament that was not supported—[Interruption.]
Let us hear one another.
The reason why I cited the action that I did is that that action is happening today. The national child sexual abuse and exploitation strategic group is looking at these questions, and Police Scotland is actively reviewing current and historical abuse investigations. That is happening today, in Scotland, under the direction of the Scottish Government, and we will consider the group’s findings.
I reiterate the fact that the Government remains open to the question of having an inquiry into grooming gangs. However, I am satisfied that the police and our judicial system will address these issues, and we will reflect on whether any further scrutiny is required in the light of those investigations.
National Health Service (Winter Preparedness)
Later today, we will hear from the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care about the Government’s so-called national health service winter preparedness plan. We have these announcements every year, yet the crisis in our NHS continues. Let us take the example of delayed discharge: this time last year, I called for action on the almost 2,000 hospital beds per day that were being lost because patients could not be discharged. This year, the number is almost exactly the same. Last year, the health secretary admitted that the crisis in the NHS happens not just at Christmas but all year round, so why are we facing another winter unprepared? Why has another year gone by and the Scottish National Party has wasted it? Why do Scots continue to suffer because of John Swinney and his SNP Government’s incompetence?
Over the course of the past year, the Government has focused on doing a number of things to reduce pressure in our NHS system. That is why long waits and waiting lists are now coming down.
The point that Mr Sarwar raises is about the flow of patients through our health and social care system, which I accept is the critical issue. That is why every NHS board now has frailty services in accident and emergency departments, which help with older and more vulnerable patients in particular. The average length of stay for patients is being reduced as a consequence of the introduction of frailty services. That is one thing that has changed materially. In addition, our efforts aim to reduce pressure on the health service through reducing waiting lists to ensure that we have adequate measures in place.
Other interventions include the hospital at home service, and the support that has been put in place through the strong local government settlement that we provided this year to strengthen health and social care partnerships and ensure that more and more people can be supported at home rather than in hospital.
The level of delayed discharge is almost exactly the same as last year, which demonstrates that there has been no progress. Every year, the SNP has a new plan, yet, every year, things get worse. Let us look at two other measures: A and E, and cancelled operations. Last winter, more than 90,000 patients waited for more than four hours in A and E; that figure is well over 4,000 higher than the winter before. However, the A and E performance statistics going into this winter are worse than those for last year. Let us look at operations: last winter, almost 4,500 operations were cancelled, but, in the months leading into this winter, 8,640 have already been cancelled, which is almost 600 more than in the months leading into winter last year.
As I said, every year, the SNP has a new plan, yet, every year, things get worse. John Swinney was supposed to be the guy who steadied the ship and made things better, but it is obvious to everyone that he has failed, is it not?
I do not think that this is a great week for Mr Sarwar to talk to me about steadying the ship, given the chaos that I see in the Labour Government in London.
Let me reassure Mr Sarwar with the fact that, in the past 12 months, there has been an increase in the number of operations that have been performed in Scotland. In September, there was an even higher increase in the number of operations that were carried out. The throughputs—in other words, the activity levels—in the health service are increasing, which is why we are making headway on reducing the waiting lists and waiting times that people are experiencing.
There are enormous pressures on A and E. One issue that I was briefed about on Tuesday by the chief medical officer is the expectation that this winter’s flu season will be particularly challenging for us, due to the prevailing strain of flu that is emerging. Therefore, there will be pressure on our emergency services, which is due to other pressures that are the result of wider health considerations.
I assure Mr Sarwar that the Government’s efforts to increase the number of general practitioners so that we have more access to healthcare, to expand the number of frailty units, and to reduce waiting lists and waiting times are all focused on ensuring that our health service can meet the needs of the people of Scotland.
The truth is that every part of our NHS is at breaking point—all because of the Scottish National Party Government.
Let us look at John Swinney’s record. On his watch, the NHS is now in permanent crisis. Hundreds more operations have been cancelled this year than were cancelled last year. Thousands more patients are facing unacceptable A and E waits. Ambulances are waiting for hours outside A and E. Thousands of people are being forced to remortgage their homes or to borrow from family in order to go private. Hundreds of thousands are waiting in pain and anxiety on NHS waiting lists.
To put it simply, our NHS is not safe in John Swinney’s hands. This is not a winter crisis—it is an SNP crisis, and it is putting lives at risk. Does that disastrous record not show that we must make this winter the last in which the SNP is in charge of our NHS?
As I have set out to the Parliament, a whole series of examples of progress has been made in the national health service—not least the fact that the number of new out-patient waits lasting for longer than a year has fallen for four consecutive months. The total numbers on waiting lists for out-patients, in-patients and day cases have decreased, so progress has been made in that respect.
Activity in the national health service has increased, with extra appointments being made available in a whole range of disciplines. Operation numbers are up. A record number of hip and knee operations have been delivered as a consequence of interventions that I have made. In preparation for winter, we have frailty services in A and E departments the length and breadth of the country to ensure that people’s needs are being met.
Since I became First Minister, I have focused on ensuring that I strengthen the national health service to meet the needs of the people of Scotland. If anybody is looking around and wondering what a Labour Government in Scotland might be like after the elections in May, they will see the very disappointing spectacle of the United Kingdom Labour Government. Look at the behaviour and performance of the UK Government over the past 15 months. [Interruption.]
Let us hear one another.
There has been a cut to winter fuel payments for pensioners, no action on the two-child limit, and the chaos of the past few days, in which the Prime Minister’s team has been briefing against his health secretary and Labour Party politicians have been fighting among themselves. The people of Scotland can rely on having, in me, a First Minister who fights for the people of Scotland. I will leave it to the Labour Party and its failed UK Government to fight among themselves.
Primary Schools (Class Contact Time)
I declare an interest in that my wife is a primary school teacher and a member of the Educational Institute of Scotland.
When John Swinney was Cabinet Secretary for Education, the Scottish National Party made a manifesto commitment to cut teachers’ class contact time. The SNP promised to deliver an hour and a half less of time in front of classes each week so that there would be more time to do lesson prep, marking and all the other things that teaching involves. Now, nearly five years on, that has not happened, and teachers are so angry about it that they could strike by the end of January. Why has the First Minister not delivered on the SNP’s manifesto commitment to our teachers?
That is an important issue, and I am determined to make progress on it. When we negotiated our budget agreement with local authorities last year, one of its provisions was to make progress on exactly that issue. There were a number of other commitments in the agreement that was reached with local authorities, and various obligations were placed on the Government on financial support for local authorities, to enable there to be no restrictions on council tax and for a variety of other issues. Every single one of the commitments that the Government made has been honoured and fulfilled, but we await progress from local authorities on class contact time.
I have made it very clear to the president of the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities that I am not prepared to tolerate a situation in which we move at the pace of the slowest local authority, which is what the Government is being presented with just now. I will have the opportunity to discuss the issue when I address the COSLA annual conference in St Andrews later today.
It is an important issue on which I want to make progress, because I do not want education to be disrupted by industrial action. I do not believe that there is a need for that, because we could be making progress on the issue. There are sufficient teachers in the system to reduce class contact time in the way that Mr Cole-Hamilton puts to me, but it needs progress from our local authority partners, which the Government will insist on.
It is a pretty pathetic excuse for the First Minister to pin this on councils, when so many of the same councils are run by his party. Let us get all this straight: the SNP Government is blaming SNP councils for preventing the SNP from keeping SNP election promises. With that kind of contortion, the First Minister must be attending some kind of secret yoga classes.
Teachers do not want to strike; they just want the Government to keep its promises. Strike action a couple of years ago caused pupils to miss up to a dozen days of school. It caused havoc for working parents. Will the First Minister give families a cast-iron guarantee today that there will be no strikes in the new year?
Mr Cole-Hamilton raises with me the logistics of how these changes are made. I cannot instruct Scottish councils to reduce class contact time. I need to do it by agreement, because the Education (Scotland) Act 1980 gives operational responsibility for the running of our schools to councils. Normally, Mr Cole-Hamilton is at the front of the queue to demand that I respect local authorities and local decision making, and here I am doing exactly that.
The point that I have made to the Parliament is that the Government reached an agreement with local authorities about reducing class contact time. I have kept my side of the bargain. I want local authorities to keep their side, which is about reducing class contact time.
I do not want there to be any disruption to education. We have just managed to negotiate a pay deal for teachers; it has been accepted by teachers, so there will be no disruption due to pay as a consequence of that negotiation by the Scottish Government and local authorities. I want to make progress on class contact time, which is exactly what the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills and I are focused on doing.
“Independent Report on Regional Economic Development in Scotland”
To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government’s response is to the report on regional economic growth by former University of Glasgow principal, Professor Sir Anton Muscatelli. (S6F-04452)
All contributions by Professor Muscatelli are worthy of consideration, and the Scottish Government will consider this one. On the report’s main topic of regional economic structures, I note that we are already committed to increasing regional empowerment and will provide further information on our plans in the coming weeks.
We note that Professor Muscatelli also identifies the requirement for a “supportive immigration policy” to contribute to economic growth and the need for the Scottish Government to “influence” the United Kingdom Government’s broken system. We need an immigration system that supports Scotland’s distinct demographic needs, and I urge the UK Government to finally recognise that.
It was Anas Sarwar who said:
“Read my lips: no austerity under Labour”.
Now his Westminster bosses threaten to inflict more than £1 billion of cuts to Scotland’s budget. The cuts would fly in the face of the economic growth that Scotland needs, as outlined in Professor Muscatelli’s report. Does the First Minister share my view that that threat proves, beyond doubt, that decisions on Scotland’s finances should be made here in Scotland, with a fresh start with independence, and not by a Westminster Government that fails Scotland at every turn?
I agree with Mr Stewart on the fundamental points. Many of those points were made by the credit rating agencies, which indicated that we have in this country a “strong” economy, “prudent financial policies” and budgetary planning with the ability to adjust where necessary in a “timely” manner, and that our
“economy is strong, with high GDP per capita in an international comparison.”
That demonstrates that, where we are able to exercise self-government, it is successful for Scotland. I want us to be able to exercise more self-government with independence and to pursue the economic opportunities that would be right for an independent Scotland.
Sir Anton Muscatelli’s report is damning on the impact of Scottish National Party tax rises. Perhaps Anas Sarwar can pass that on to Rachel Reeves before she inflicts yet more damage on the Scottish economy.
Will the First Minister now stop playing the daft laddie on income tax and concede two points: first, that he has broken his manifesto pledge to freeze income tax; and, secondly, that he has repeatedly misled this Parliament, as have his ministers, on how many Scots are now paying more tax than they would if they lived in England?
We have maintained our manifesto commitments in relation to taxation. On the issue of the tax paid by people in Scotland, the Scottish Fiscal Commission’s briefing paper, which was published on Tuesday, indicated clearly that the
“majority of Scottish taxpayers pay less”
in taxation than they would if they lived in the rest of the United Kingdom. [Interruption.] That is what I have always said to the Parliament, and I will keep on saying it. Mr Hoy might not like that, but I am going to keep on saying the things that are the case.
Let us ensure that everyone gathered here can hear what is being said.
I welcome the interest in this important report from Scotland’s leading economist Professor Sir Anton Muscatelli, which was commissioned by Scottish Labour. Let us try having a supplementary that is actually on the detail of the report.
The report comes out in the same week as an Audit Scotland report identified that the Scottish Government has £1.1 billion less to spend because earnings are growing less quickly in Scotland than they are in the rest of the United Kingdom. Does the First Minister agree with the observation in both Muscatelli’s report and Audit Scotland’s report that there has been a failure to identify the substantial economic levers that are available to the Scottish Government, and to march with them? In particular, does he agree with the detail in the Audit Scotland report that there has been a failure to focus on policies that could grow earnings and wages in Scotland? After all, that is not only right for the Scottish economy; it is also right for Scottish workers, is it not?
There are several points in what Daniel Johnson has said to me. In relation to the question of wealth generation, since 2007, under this Government, gross domestic product per person in Scotland has grown by 10.2 per cent, compared with growth of 6.8 per cent in the United Kingdom. Meanwhile, productivity has grown at an average rate of 0.9 per cent per year in Scotland, compared with the UK average of 0.3 per cent. That debunks the point that Mr Johnson has put to me.
Of course, there are structural inequalities in the United Kingdom in terms of economic activity and wealth, which the Scottish Government is trying to counter with the limited powers of devolution. We could do more with the powers of independence, which would give us more scope to act in that respect.
What should be causing much more cheer and optimism in the Parliament today is the reports of the credit rating agencies, which demonstrate that Scotland has a large and well-diversified economy that supports tax-generation capacity. They also demonstrate that we have governance that has a positive impact on the credit rating, stemming from good budgeting practices, a supportive institutional framework and a good fiscal track record. It is pretty obvious that the Opposition in this Parliament cannot cope when anything good is said about Scotland or about the performance of the Scottish Government. This is a day for Scotland to be proud of our economic track record.
Income Tax
To ask the First Minister whether the Scottish Government will maintain its manifesto commitment to freeze income tax rates and bands. (S6F-04455)
As in the normal course of any budget, we will outline our income tax policy for 2026-27 in the Scottish budget, on 13 January 2026.
I have it here:
“Freeze income tax rates and bands, and increase thresholds by a maximum of inflation”.
It says it in the manifesto. However, Labour is set to do exactly what John Swinney wants: Rachel Reeves will break her manifesto commitment and raise taxes for hard-working Scots. According to Audit Scotland, the Scottish Government will face a £1 billion shortfall. [Interruption.]
Let us hear Ms Hamilton.
John Swinney seems set on breaking his promises, too. Can he tell us how much that will cost Scottish taxpayers?
Obviously, there is a lot of talk about tax at the moment, and there is a lot of uncertainty about the UK Government’s position, which may well have implications for us. The Scottish Government will take the opportunity to consider those issues and will set out in an orderly fashion the approach that we will take on tax, given that we may well have a different tax landscape to consider. That is what the people of Scotland would expect us to do.
Peatland Restoration
To ask the First Minister whether the Scottish Government is still on track to restore 250,000 hectares of peatland by 2030. (S6F-04446)
Through peatland action, our peatland restoration programme, we have restored around 90,000 hectares to date, including 14,860 hectares in 2024-25. This year, we are on track to deliver more than 12,000 hectares of restored peatland.
In the draft climate change plan that was published last week, we included a proposal to expand and extend our programme to restore 400,000 hectares by 2040. That reflects an increase in our ambition. Protecting, managing and restoring degraded peatlands is a vital part of mitigating and adapting to the climate and nature emergencies.
Eighty per cent of our peatlands—approximately 1.6 million hectares—are degraded. That means that they are one of our largest single sources of emissions. They cannot support nature restoration or provide solutions to issues such as flooding.
It is vital that we urgently step up restoration efforts, but, in the new draft climate change plan, the Government is slowing things down. Increasing restoration by 10 per cent a year represents a major deceleration compared with the previous 2030 target. First Minister, why is your Government going backwards on that key policy at the same time as pledging to do more for climate and nature?
Always speak through the chair.
As I set out in my earlier answer, we are taking a number of steps to extend our commitments on peatland restoration. That is one part of the programme for climate action that has been set out to Parliament. By the end of this year, we will have set out the planning that will be necessary to achieve the 2040 ambitions.
I agree with Ariane Burgess on the importance of taking such action to help us on our journey to net zero, and that is exactly the focus of the Government’s climate change plan.
In Midlothian, peat is still being extracted. It is dug up commercially through a licence under the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997, which requires only 50-year periodic reviews of licences for mineral permissions. The issue is one that I have pursued for some time. Given that it seems bizarre and even counterproductive for that legislation to allow peat extraction to take place over 50-year periods while the Scottish Government is pledging to restore peat, will the Government undertake to review it?
I hope that it gives Christine Grahame some reassurance to learn that national planning framework 4 includes provision whereby development proposals for new commercial peat extraction, including extensions to existing sites, are not supported, except in relation to use in the whisky industry.
We continue to work towards delivering our commitment to ban the sale of horticultural peat, and we are currently exploring all legislative options for establishing new restrictions. I hope that that gives Christine Grahame some reassurance, but I would be happy to engage further on that question.
The 14,860 hectares of peatland that were restored last year accounted for a reduction in carbon emissions of approximately 282,000 tonnes. However, an initial estimate suggests that one wildfire at Dava and Carrbridge in July this year accounted for 590,000 tonnes of carbon emissions, which is more than twice as much as the total reduction that was achieved through peatland restoration.
Given that the aim is the overall reduction of carbon emissions, would not true greens—true greens like myself—wish to see a little more money being spent on tackling wildfires effectively? Perhaps the money could come from the peatland restoration budget.
I do not think that Mr Ewing has put an either/or question to me. I do not want wildfires to happen in Scotland. They are happening because of climate change. We have to take the long-term climate action that is required to reduce the temperature of the planet.
As Parliament knows, I have been in Malawi and Zambia and have seen at close quarters the ferocious damage of climate change in those communities. It is happening here in Scotland: the wildfires are a symptom of the problem and we have had water scarcity in the north-east of Scotland right up until early October.
We cannot ignore the effects of climate change in our society. We have to take action, which is why the Government is committed to peatland restoration, and it is why, as Mr Fairlie set out in his statement to Parliament, the Government is committed to undertaking effective collaborative work to tackle the risk of wildfires in our society.
We move to general and constituency supplementary questions. There is, as ever, much interest, so concise questions and responses are appreciated.
Housing Provision (Motor Neurone Disease)
My constituent Chelsea was diagnosed with motor neurone disease in 2024. With her condition now worryingly deteriorating, she finds herself in wholly unsuitable accommodation with her husband, who is her full-time carer, and her four children. A larger, appropriately adapted property would afford Chelsea and her family quality of life in the remaining precious time that they have together.
Despite the best efforts of MND Scotland and the representations that I have made to various housing providers, the size of the property that is required has been a stumbling block. First Minister, I know that a new property for Chelsea and her family is not in your gift, but in such circumstances, families quite rightly look to us all for a solution. Will the First Minister consider the plight of Chelsea and her family and use his office to see whether a solution to this dreadful situation can be identified?
I am sorry to hear of the case that Mr Doris brings to my attention on behalf of his constituent Chelsea. I send Chelsea and her family my very best wishes.
One of the important issues here is the ability to adapt properties to meet the needs of individuals or, potentially, to construct new-build properties. That cannot be done overnight. We have increased the budget for adaptations to £20.9 million. One of the reasons for doing that was to make sure that we had suitable accommodation for cases such as Chelsea’s. If Mr Doris would like to share details with me, I will use whatever endeavours I can in my office to try to resolve the situation.
While I am speaking about MND, I also pay tribute to Sheriff Alastair Carmichael, a sheriff in Dundee who is very courageously continuing to work as a sheriff with adaptive technology and has shared his case publicly with us all. I wish to express my admiration for Sheriff Carmichael and for the courageous example that he sets for us all in the face of the challenges that he is experiencing. He is an example to us all, as I know that Chelsea and her family will be.
Supreme Court Judgment (Sexual Offences Trials)
Yesterday, the United Kingdom Supreme Court issued a judgment in the cases of David Daly and Andrew Keir, which, while upholding their convictions, raises serious issues about the conduct of trials involving sexual offences. Legal experts say that the judgment could trigger multiple appeals by those who are convicted of sexual offences.
The courts have a difficult task in balancing the need to protect complainants—usually women—from intrusive questioning about their behaviour, while also guaranteeing the accused a fair trial. How will the Scottish Government respond to the judgment?
The Supreme Court judgment gives detailed consideration to the complex issues that are involved in the admissibility of evidence in sexual offences trials. It is clear from the judgment that there is no requirement for a change in the provisions in the law that specifically regulates those matters, which are sections 274 and 275 of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995.
The Supreme Court said that it is for all judges in sexual offences cases to reflect the ruling as they would any other Supreme Court ruling that was relevant to them in the handling of such cases. It is therefore a matter for the courts, which, as Mr Fraser will know, operate independently of the Government. I know that the judiciary will consider the issues that arise as a consequence of the Supreme Court judgment, but there is no requirement for us to change the law.
Supreme Court Judgment (Sexual Offences Trials)
In addition to the issues raised in Murdo Fraser’s question, Parliament recently passed the Victims, Witnesses, and Justice Reform (Scotland) Act 2025, which looks to make the experiences of victims and witnesses easier. What assurances can the First Minister give to women who are now concerned about the risk of having to go through an appeal process? What does the Supreme Court decision mean for evidence in future rape and sexual assault cases?
My substantive point was that there is, in my view, no requirement for legislative change because the decision is about court procedure. Claire Baker’s question highlights important issues relating to the conduct of court cases, which can have a bearing on the type of questions that are asked and on the type of evidence that is given and can cause enormous distress to the victims in those cases, who are invariably women.
The Government will carefully consider the implications of the ruling in the course of time and the courts will have to reflect on those issues. It would be deeply regrettable if there was any return to some of the court practices that were deeply distressing to the victims of sexual crime and I set out today my desire to ensure that that is not the outcome of the Supreme Court judgment.
Energy Bills (Social Tariffs)
New modelling by the Scottish National Party Government shows that a social tariff on energy bills could lift more than 200,000 Scottish households out of extreme fuel poverty. Although the powers to compel energy companies to act remain at Westminster, the Scottish Government must do all that it can to encourage progress, especially because the United Kingdom Government has broken its promise to reduce bills by £300. Can the First Minister outline how much households could expect to save under a social tariff? Will he outline what engagement his Government is undertaking to make a social tariff a reality for those who need it most, including those in the Highlands and Islands?
We shared the final report of our social tariff working group with the UK Government in March this year, asking it to act on the recommendations. Analysis this week shows that, if those recommendations were implemented, around 660,000 households in Scotland would see their bills go down by an average of £700 under a targeted bill discount, lifting more than 150,000 households out of fuel poverty. We continue to seek engagement with the UK Government on that work and our position remains that it must take urgent action to protect households and to deliver on its promises, which it has singularly failed to do to date.
Killer of Keith Rollinson (Early Release)
Keith Rollinson died in February 2024 after being brutally attacked while working as a bus driver in Elgin. His killer received a sentence of only four years and four months and his family have now been told, through the victim notification scheme, that he could be released as early as next year.
Keith’s widow, Sue Rollinson, has called that “disgusting” and said that she feels
“broken-hearted to think that Keith has not had justice”.
She also said:
“I don’t think he should be released early. We’ve been let down totally”.
Sue Rollinson is right, is she not?
I have every sympathy with Mrs Rollinson for the loss that she has suffered, and I pay tribute to her husband, who should not have experienced what he experienced in the course of his responsibilities.
Issues of sentencing are taken forward independently by the judiciary, and it would be inappropriate for me to question sentences that are set out. Various legislative issues have to be considered before anyone is released, and that process will take its course, but I take the opportunity to express my sympathy to Mrs Rollinson on the heartbreak that she suffered in the loss of her husband and the anxiety that the issue will be causing her today.
Ferry Disruption (Isle of Lewis)
Ferry passengers in Lewis have been experiencing incredible disruption due to the MV Isle of Lewis being unable to carry any vehicles since last week. That has been particularly difficult and trying for those travelling to and from hospital appointments, because, even if they can get an alternative booking, that adds more than three hours’ drive to their journeys. All road haulage is also disrupted.
It feels as if this is the start of another winter of constant disruption with no end in sight. What alternatives have been put in place for Lewis? What alternatives will be put in place for Barra when that ferry returns to its normal route at some point, possibly next week? What steps will the First Minister take to ensure that islanders are never left in this situation again?
I understand the difficulties that have been experienced. I understand that cars are now able to be taken on the MV Isle of Lewis, which is the ferry operating on the Ullapool to Stornoway route. In addition, CalMac has put on additional sailings of the MV Hebrides between Uig and Tarbert. I accept that that involves a longer journey for travellers from Lewis, but CalMac has provided additional capacity on that route.
We are going through the winter maintenance period and operating to a winter timetable where there are fewer sailings. However, CalMac will be working—and the Cabinet Secretary for Transport is deeply engaged in all these questions—to make sure that effective and sustainable services are available to all island communities. The Government will be actively working to ensure that that is the case.
We will have two further brief supplementary questions.
Economy and Employment
This week saw another example of SNP Scotland and the Labour United Kingdom being on different trajectories. While unemployment in Scotland continues to fall, in the rest of Britain it has risen to its highest level since the pandemic. This morning, we saw that UK growth in the last quarter was at a pitiful 0.1 per cent. Will the First Minister outline the SNP Government’s commitment to growing Scotland’s economy and supporting people into work, particularly our younger generation?
It is a key focus of my Government to improve economic opportunity. We are now seeing very distinct patterns of unemployment between Scotland and the rest of the United Kingdom. We continue to have substantial success in growing the economy and attracting investment.
The credit rating score that we achieved last night from Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s, which is the best rating that we could possibly have achieved, is a tribute to the strength of the Scottish economy, the strength of this Government’s fiscal management and the strength of the institutions that we have at our disposal. It is good news for Scotland, and it is a proud day for our country.
Violence in Schools
Ten years on from Bailey Gwynne’s tragic killing in Aberdeen and promises of action from the Government, hard-hitting figures show that incidents of pupil violence in Aberdeen schools have quadrupled while, across the city, the number of crimes recorded in schools is rising year on year. However, let members be in no doubt: the issue is not confined to Aberdeen. For years, the Government has promised but failed to stem the violence in our schools. When will the Government start taking real action, such as anti-weapon lessons in classrooms, and finally stop these horrific incidents?
Let me make it clear that there is absolutely no place for violence in our schools in any way, shape or form. The Government’s behaviour guidance, which has been constructed in collaboration with local authorities and trade unions, is designed to enable us to address those issues. Many of the techniques that Mr Kerr talked about—education on violence and the danger of carrying knives, for example—are taken forward in our school system. The mentors in violence prevention programme and the steps that are taken in relation to the no knives, better lives campaign are all shared in our schools.
I reinforce the importance that the Government attaches to education and measures of that type to ensure that pupil behaviour does not result in tragedies such as the loss of Bailey Gwynne, which is at the heart of Mr Kerr’s question.
That concludes First Minister’s question time.
On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I fear that the First Minister may have misled Parliament again today, so I seek your advice on how we can invite him to correct the record. The SNP manifesto quite clearly committed to freezing income tax rates and bands, yet in the budget of 2023-24, both income tax rates and income tax bands rose above inflation. The First Minister has yet again misled not just the Parliament but the public who are watching. I seek your advice as to how we can finally get the truth from the First Minister when he appears in this Parliament.
Thank you. Mr Hoy will be aware that the content of members’ contributions is not a matter for the chair. There is of course a mechanism, which all members will be well aware of at this stage in the session, whereby any inaccuracies or otherwise can be corrected.
Before we move to the next item of business, I will suspend the meeting briefly to allow those who are leaving the chamber and the public gallery to do so.
12:49 Meeting suspended.Previous
General Question TimeNext
Tourette Syndrome