Chamber and committees

The Fireworks and Pyrotechnic Articles (Scotland) Act 2022 gave local authorities powers to designate firework control zones. It is for them to decide how they use those powers. This year, four zones were designated by the City of Edinburgh Council.

Statutory guidance is available to support local authorities, and the Scottish Government has made funding available for consulting on and implementing the zones. South Lanarkshire Council has not requested any of that funding or approached my officials about the possibility of doing so.

More broadly, I recognise the nature of problems that are caused by fireworks, and I have written to the United Kingdom Government to ask for a meeting to discuss what more can be done on fireworks regulation.

Unlike England and Wales, where there have been significant cuts to legal aid scope and funding, we have maintained the scope and resourcing of legal aid.

The expenditure for legal aid provides timescales. The expenditure in the financial year 2023-24 was £151 million. That is demand led, and it was £10 million higher than the allocated budget. It was a 12 per cent increase on 2022-23 and a 16 per cent increase from 2019-20.

We do not intend to replicate the changes of the United Kingdom Government with reduced legal aid, but we agree that an independent review of reform is needed.

The Scottish Government supports the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service to keep our communities safe, every day of the year, through its highly skilled crews, providing £393.3 million this year. The SFRS is ready to respond to the range of challenges over winter, including severe weather and flooding, and it works closely with our other responders through resilience partnerships. As a national organisation, it can direct resources where it needs them most. The SFRS will continue to issue public safety advice over the winter, with a particular focus on road and water safety in the event of severe weather. In parallel, the Scottish Government supports the service to undertake prevention activity through home fire safety visits to vulnerable people and winter safety campaigns.

The safety and welfare staff in the SFRS continue to invest in the repair and maintenance of its buildings so that it can deliver services to communities across Scotland. I know that the SFRS has a programme of fire station refurbishment, where dignified facilities for all firefighters, along with proper separation of areas to avoid contamination, are priorities. It is right and sensible for the SFRS to consider where its assets should be based to ensure that the right resources are in the right place to deal with the risks that our communities face. I am happy to write to Beatrice Wishart specifically about the Shetland case.

The number of active legal aid solicitors has remained broadly similar in the years since 2020, and we are unaware of any accused being released as a result of being underrepresented. We acknowledge that people seeking help in relation to certain types of cases face challenges in some places. However, we cannot compel private solicitors to undertake work.

We recognise that reform is needed, and the Scottish Legal Aid Board is currently undertaking a comprehensive analysis to collect evidence of the degree of legal aid activity at geographical and subject matter level. I have written to the Law Society of Scotland and the Scottish Solicitors Bar Association, asking them to continue to work productively to identify measures to improve and reform Scotland’s legal aid system.

We have introduced a number of measures to limit unsafe and antisocial use of fireworks, including restrictions on supply and powers for local authorities to designate firework control zones. Like the police and partners, we are keen to explore further opportunities to address and prevent disorder of the kind that we have seen in some places. I have written to the United Kingdom Government asking for a meeting to discuss what more can be done on fireworks regulation. We will continue to engage with the UK Government to gauge opportunities to improve fireworks regulation.

I agree that fireworks should always be used responsibly, particularly considering the noise impact. I noted with interest that there is a private member’s bill in the House of Commons that seeks to mandate the use of silent or low-noise fireworks. The legal maximum noise level for fireworks is defined in the UK-wide legislation. As I said, I have written to the UK Government to request a meeting to discuss updating fireworks regulation. I recognise that we share the goal of enhancing community safety and wellbeing, and I plan to address the noise issues as part of those conversations.

In its written evidence, the Faculty of Advocates suggested that, when the requirement to find caution is imposed by the court, the appointment of the judicial factor and the vesting of the estate and standard powers in the judicial factor should be postponed until after caution is found. I consider that it is sensible that registration of the appointment and vesting of the estate and standard powers do not take place until the accountant has confirmed that the requirement to find caution has been satisfied. That is what amendments 6, 7, 9, 10 and 13 provide for.

That ties in with section 8(3), which ensures that, when the court requires a caution to be found, the judicial factor does not receive a certified copy of the interlocutor and, thus, is not able to deal with the property until the accountant confirms that the requirement to find caution has been satisfied.

I ask members to support all my amendments in the group.

I move amendment 6.

Amendment 6 agreed to.

Amendment 7 moved—[Siobhian Brown]—and agreed to.

Section 6, as amended, agreed to.

After section 6

Earlier this year, when responding to the committee’s stage 1 report, I set out my views on lodging an amendment to make it clear that it is competent to appoint a judicial factor over the estate of a missing person. During the stage 1 debate, it was clear that that was one of the issues about which many MSPs felt strongly. I have listened to those views and have considered whether more can be done to balance them with the wider policy regarding the circumstances in which the appointment of a judicial factor can be sought.

The committee’s recommendation is clear that a reference to missing people could be added in such a way to make it clear that the bill may be used by people who seek to manage the estate of a missing person. The committee knows my concerns about amending section 3, but my amendment 12 implements the recommendation while ensuring that the wider policy in the bill is not undermined.

Amendment 12 imposes a requirement on the Scottish ministers to produce guidance about the appointment of a judicial factor, under section 1, for the estates of missing people. As such, it makes it clear that the families of missing persons can use the bill.

I move amendment 12.

Section 27 makes provision in relation to formulation of a scheme for distribution of the factory estate by a judicial factor. Where a person with an interest lodges an objection to the scheme prepared by the judicial factor, the Accountant of Court is required to refer the objection to the court. Under section 27(9) the court’s options are to either reject the objection and order distribution in line with the scheme prepared by the judicial factor, or to instruct the judicial factor to distribute the estate as the court thinks fit.

The Sheriffs and Summary Sheriffs Association suggested that a further option should be available to the court—namely, to make such other order as the court considers appropriate. Although it is anticipated that, in most cases, the court will order distribution of the estate, I consider that there might be circumstances where other orders, such as continuation of the judicial factory, may be appropriate. Amendment 22 adds further flexibility to section 27 by allowing the court to respond to the particular circumstances of a case.

I move amendment 22.

Amendment 22 agreed to.

Section 27, as amended, agreed to.

Section 28—Application for distribution of factory estate

Amendment 23 moved—[Siobhian Brown]—and agreed to.

Section 28, as amended, agreed to.

Section 29—Termination, recall and discharge after distribution of factory estate

Amendment 24 moved—[Siobhian Brown]—and agreed to.

Section 29, as amended, agreed to.

Section 30—Duty of Accountant to apply for appointment of replacement where judicial factor has died or ceased to perform duties