Chamber and committees

I thank everyone who has taken part in today’s debate and shared their positive experiences of the cashback for communities programme’s 15 years of benefiting young people, families and communities. As I said at the start, the programme is unique to Scotland and demonstrates innovation, partnership and the importance of why we must invest in our young people.

We should acknowledge that most young people are not involved in antisocial behaviour or the justice system. However, we should also recognise that, sadly, some young people do not get the opportunities for the good start in life that we want them to have. The cashback programme helps to address their inequality by making high-value early interventions to provide a wide range of support activities and opportunities for children and young people, all of whom should be given the same chances to thrive.

I will address quite a few of the comments that have come up; there is quite a bit to cover. On Russell Findlay’s contribution, I think that every person across the chamber wants to see an increase in the crime funds that go into initiatives such as cashback. I do not think that anyone would disagree with that.

The 2002 act provides for criminal confiscation and civil recovery of the financial benefit that is derived from criminal activity, but it also contains the principal money laundering legislation for the UK, which is a reserved matter. The 2002 act is a complex mix of reserved and devolved matters, and we will not be able to resolve that today. The Scottish Government has responsibility for leading on legislative matters in relation to proceeds of crime, but this is a complex area of reserved and devolved competences. We will continue to monitor the need to strengthen the legislation to further detect, defer and disrupt organised crime, so that we can increase the criminal funds that go into initiatives such as cashback.

I go back to Russell Findlay’s question about serious organised crime. Disrupting organised crime and diverting individuals from organised crime remains a priority for the Scottish Government. A refreshed serious organised crime strategy was published in February 2022. Although the aims and objectives remain broadly the same, the options for change have focused on strengthening links between intelligence and tasking, making better use of data and supporting efforts to improve collaboration across all sectors, in order to combat the constantly evolving challenges that serious crime organisations pose. The serious organised crime task force progress report is due to be published later this month.

I move to Katy Clark’s contribution. Carol Mochan also brought up restorative justice. We remain committed to having restorative justice services available throughout Scotland. The needs and voices of harmed persons must be central to the process, and services must be safe, consistent, evidence led, trauma informed and of a high standard.

Obviously, the pandemic slowed progress. Initial development work identified the complexities, which we need to explore further. We are committed to taking the time to resolve the issues and develop a safe and robust system, and work is under way with partners across the justice system to do that.

Katy Clark asked about the criteria for phase 6. There were four main aims—diversion away from antisocial behaviour; provision for positive activity; support for wellbeing; and building confidence and skills. I know that there was an exceptionally high number of applicants, with 157 bids seeking more than £80 million in funding. Those bids were subject to a robust panel assessment process and, in the end, only 29 partner organisations were successful.

On evaluation, which I think that Claire Baker, Pauline McNeill and Katy Clark raised, as I said in my opening speech, the full evaluation of phase 5 is due this year, and it will be for members to look at that.

Many members will already be familiar with the cashback for communities programme and the work that it delivers in their communities. Some may have even visited projects in their area to see the work at first hand.

The cashback programme, which is unique to Scotland, takes funds that are recovered from criminals under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and returns them to communities. The funds are used to deliver a range of community projects and activities to support children and young people who are aged between 10 and 25.

The Scottish Government has delivered five phases of the cashback programme since its inception in 2008, committing up to £130 million over that time. The investment has provided more than 2.5 million activities and opportunities, and it has supported more than 1.3 million young people as it has grown in breadth and diversity over the years.

In its early days, the programme funded investment in football facilities and playing fields to divert youth away from antisocial behaviour. It has now developed into a multifaceted programme of activities that range from intensive one-to-one support for young people and their families, including counselling for trauma, to skills development, creative arts development, volunteering and employability work.

The diversity and accessibility of the programme is greater than ever, with projects being offered to young people in every one of our local authorities. It supports young people of all backgrounds to engage in projects that help to build their confidence, encourage positive life choices and raise their aspirations.

Today, we publish the “Cashback for Communities Impact Report 2022-23”, which is the final annual report from phase 5 of the programme, which ran from April 2022 to March 2023. Almost all of phase 5 was delivered during the global Covid-19 pandemic period. That was a time of unprecedented upheaval and challenge, when young people faced immense disruption to and uncertainty in their lives, and when all the projects were impacted.

Year 3, which was from April 2022 to March 2023 covers a period when lockdown restrictions finally ended and young people started to rebuild their lives.

Against that context, the 2022-23 impact report shows that the programme still achieved remarkable outcomes for children and young people. That is testament to the dedication of all those who were involved in delivering the cashback programme. Projects that would traditionally have been delivered face to face or inside a venue became very difficult to run during Covid, and it was a real challenge to find activities that could be offered to young people, as access to venues and facilities was unavailable due to social distancing restrictions.

Many organisations piloted online delivery and outdoor approaches to ensure that thousands of potentially isolated young people could be reached and supported during that time. Where that was not possible—for example, in projects working with young people in prison—alternative creative approaches were used to keep in touch with participants, such as broadcasting messages to prisoners using prison radio.

The impact of the pandemic was far reaching, and cashback organisations responded to the immediate needs of many children, young people and families, including, for example, by delivering food parcels. Phase 5 organisations are to be commended for their response to the pandemic at a time when their own organisations were also dealing with challenges as a result of sickness and furloughed staff.

Up to £19 million was committed to support the phase 5 cashback programme. The impact report shows the positive benefits of the projects that were funded during that phase. There were 28,060 young people participating in year 3 activities, and 78 per cent of the participants were from the 30 per cent most deprived communities. Young people achieved a wide range of outcomes. More than 21,000 reported “increased confidence” and improved health and wellbeing; nearly 17,000 reported positive behavioural changes and achieved positive destinations that included staying on at school, further education, training and employment; and nearly 15,000 said that “they felt less inclined” to take part in antisocial behaviour. In addition, more than 4,000 undertook 115,000 hours of volunteering.

We can all celebrate those positive achievements, but it is directly from those young people that we get some of the most powerful endorsements of the programme. On their time in the programme, one young person offered the following reflection:

“I’m keeping my head down. Since I got this job, I haven’t been hanging about and it’s kept me busy. If I hadn’t got this job, I would probably still be kicking about getting into trouble.”

The feedback from families was also positive. For example, one parent observed:

“I’ve never seen him so confident, he is quite happy being independent at the session now and getting involved with activities and making friends.”

In addition, 97 per cent of other stakeholders, such as teachers and project workers, perceived improvements in wellbeing indicators, and

“92% ... reported a reduction in risk-taking behaviours”.

The incredible work of our cashback-funded partners is founded on their total commitment to understanding the needs of the young people with whom they engage. Phase 5 partners were the first group of cashback organisations to embed children’s rights and wellbeing in the cashback programme. All 24 cashback organisations reviewed their work against the principles of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child in order to ensure that the needs and rights of children and young people remained central to the programme, and the children and young people themselves were active participants in that process. They were also involved in shaping phase 5 projects and in providing feedback to help to frame our next phase.

We surveyed more than 850 cashback participants during phase 5, and the findings were clear. Most of the participants thought that

“the proceeds of crime should be reinvested in those communities most impacted”.

There was also an

“Overwhelming positive response”

to

“the value ... wide range and easy accessibility of CashBack ... projects”,

which participants viewed as

“highly inclusive”.

Young people placed

“most value on ... mental health, particularly in relation to confidence, anxiety and social interaction”,

alongside

“acquiring new skills and experiences”

and

“improving support networks through 1 to 1 support and guidance, from trusted and experienced mentors and staff.”

It was noted that, in several instances, young people reported that that had allowed them to stop or reduce

“offending behaviour, drug and alcohol abuse, self-harming”,

and to rebuild

“positive family relationships”.

In addition, “volunteering and community connectivity” were also highly valued by the participants.

I hope that members will take time to view the 2022-23 impact report in full and agree that it demonstrates that cashback is a highly impactful programme that is worth every penny invested.

A full evaluation of phase 5 will be published before the end of the year. It is important that we do that at the end of each three-year phase to ensure that the work that we fund remains relevant, adds value to our young people and has a positive impact on our communities.

The end of phase 5 this year also marks the beginning of the next phase of the cashback for communities programme. Phase 6 will run from April 2023 to March 2026, with a further commitment of up to £20 million. That significant investment, which comes from money that is recovered from the proceeds of crime, reflects our confidence in the programme.

Each phase is underpinned by a robust application process where organisations are able to submit project proposals. Successful applicants were awarded grant funding for a three-year period. Phase 6 was the most competitive round of funding so far, with the programme significantly oversubscribed. Unfortunately, we were not able to fund every proposal; only the strongest applications were successful, and I am sure that they will all be as successful as previous projects.

I recently had the pleasure of meeting all 29 phase 6 cashback partners to learn about the range of work that is planned for the next three years. I was really impressed by the strength of the projects and the passion and professionalism of all the organisations.

The focus of phase 6 projects is to support young people—who are most at risk of being involved in antisocial behaviour offending or reoffending—towards or into positive destinations. Fund projects will provide support for young people, parents and families who are impacted by adverse childhood experiences and trauma, support young people to improve their health, mental health and wellbeing, and also support the people, families and communities who are most affected by crime.

The latest cohort of projects is both strong and diverse. In addition to traditional youth work, sporting activities, employability, and culture and arts projects, we have strengthened the range of options that are available to support girls and young women, young carers and homeless young people.

We have also increased our commitment to diversity by investing in key work to promote children’s rights, racial equality and disability. Cashback also aims to include support for young people who have been in conflict with the justice system.

This morning, I was pleased to visit the violent offender watch—VOW—cashback project, which is delivered by Police Scotland in partnership with the charity Aid & Abet. The intensive support project aims to remove young people from the criminal justice system and support them into positive destinations. The collaboration between police officers and peer mentors is a fantastic model for building trust with young people and helping them to make positive choices. It was a privilege to meet those people who are involved in delivering the project as well as one of the young people who has really benefited from it in the past few months.

Previous feedback from one young person who engaged with the project during phase 5 is testament to the impact of the programme. They said:

“Had I not ... met the VOW Project I have no idea where I would be with my drinking but believe I would have continued to escalate further in criminality and self-destruction.”

The cashback project work that is delivered in those and similar settings across the country is helping young people to rebuild their lives, family connections and relationships with their community.

I move,

That the Parliament commends the CashBack for Communities programme, which is now in its 15th year and sixth phase; understands that the programme is unique to Scotland and reinvests money recovered under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002; acknowledges that the aims of the programme are diversion from antisocial behaviour, provision of positive activity, support for wellbeing, and building confidence and skills for young people; notes that, since its inception, the programme has committed £130 million to supporting around 1.3 million young people; understands that, over the next three years, phase six of the programme is expected to reach around 34,000 young people; welcomes and thanks the CashBack for Communities-funded partner organisations for their dedication, passion and hard work; recognises the opportunities and benefits that the programme brings to children, young people, families and communities, and applauds the achievements of the many thousands of CashBack for Communities participants.

Yes.

The provision is intended to ensure that an appropriate regulator is always in place to regulate authorised legal businesses, should there be no other suitable regulator. Such intervention may be necessary because the members of the regulator may be involved in an on-going court case that might be disrupted, or because of transactions that might put them into difficulty. To avoid that and to respond to it, the Scottish ministers may intervene to create a body to become a new regulator or have another regulator, such as the Law Society, step in to take over the regulation, or they may even regulate the providers themselves.

In relation to when the power could be used, the provision is intended as a measure of last resort in specific circumstances and only in the event that a regulator finds itself unable to operate. It is designed to cover situations in which a regulator of authorised legal businesses gets into difficulty, such as a financial collapse or as a result of regulatory failures.

Moving on, as I mentioned when we were discussing section 35, given the similarity of the measures in section 49 with those in section 35, we are exploring amendments that would bring them together in one provision that would maintain the power to take action in urgent situations but would transfer it to the Lord President.

The general approach is that it is for the approved regulators to resolve regulatory conflict, in discussion with other regulators, as appropriate. However, should that prove to be impossible or unduly complicated, this power allows the Scottish ministers the flexibility to ensure that such conflicts can be resolved. As the provisions that would be made would depend on the detailed circumstances of any particular conflict that may arise and would address an issue that would be likely to require quick resolution, the use of subordinate legislation is considered to be appropriate. As was raised with the Law Society during its evidence, it is already subject to the oversight of a number of regulatory bodies, such as the Financial Conduct Authority, for the purposes of anti-money laundering and incidental financial business.

The bill also seeks to expand the oversight of the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission to allow it to set minimum standards for the first time. In addition, the bill introduces regulation of legal entities for the first time in Scotland, and we also have a system for the regulation of licensed providers, which it is hoped will be up and running soon. The Law Society will continue to be responsible for the regulation of individual legal practitioners and for some firms that operate across the border and that have regulatory responsibilities in each area of their operation. As has been acknowledged, the system is complex, and the regulation-making powers provide reassurance that any regulatory conflicts that may arise can be rectified.

As Leanna MacLarty said, we are still working through the detail of that. Of course, we will give careful consideration to the recommendations from this committee and the lead committee.

Thank you, convener. Section 20(6) is intended to be used should it be discovered in practice that further additional measures would be helpful tools because the existing suite of powers in section 20 are found to be insufficiently robust or extreme or disproportionately severe.

The powers ensure that there are appropriate tools to tackle any poor performance on the part of regulators. The section is also intended to be used to give further details about the specifics of the measures that can be taken and the procedures involved. For example, it allows the Scottish ministers to specify the maximum amount of financial penalty that may be imposed on a regulator in accordance with paragraph 13 of schedule 2 to the bill. That power has already been written into legislation and approved by Parliament in the Legal Services (Scotland) Act 2010.

I have indicated my intention to lodge amendments that will transfer the responsibility for carrying out the review under sections 19 and 20 to the Lord President. The regulation-making powers remain necessary despite the change, but the provision already requires the Lord President’s agreement before any regulations are made. That power acts as a veto against any new measures being introduced.

I will give members an example of where that delegated power could be used. Although we consider that the measures that are already provided are sufficient, the Lord President may seek a power to remove a particular individual from a role within a regulator rather than take measures against the regulator as a whole. As an example, in certain circumstances, the Lord President may remove the chair of the Scottish Legal Complaints Commission.

No, that is not fair. Early negotiations are on-going regarding the issue, and we will take forward and consider all the recommendations of this committee and the lead committee, and those of the legal sector. Engagement on the matter is on-going.

Yes, we are engaging with all stakeholders and the legal sector as we progress the bill.

Having considered the feedback from stakeholders, we intend to lodge amendments at stage 2 that will introduce a requirement for the Lord President’s consent to be obtained before any regulations are made using that provision and which will narrow the scope so that it will be used in response to a request by a regulator or the consumer panel.

The provisions are necessary to ensure that the guarantee fund, which is established in what is now quite aged legislation, continues to be able to adapt to changes in the way in which solicitors operate.

Do any of my officials want to come in on that?