Chamber and committees

I confess that it has been quite a number of decades since I got my driving licence, which is what my other question relates to. The provisions that are set out in clause 95 would expand the purposes for which the police can access driving licence information from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency by expanding the list of authorised persons who can access its database, as well as the range of offences relating to which the police can access DVLA information. I noticed in the LCM a reference to the Scottish Biometrics Commissioner’s support of the provisions, which got me wondering whether the information that police officers can potentially access includes biometric data. Do you have a wee bit more detail on that?

Has the range of offences been broadened out significantly? Are specific offences set out in the provisions of clause 95?

Thank you. I am very pleased to see that the bill contains specific provisions on cuckooing, as well as a range of provisions that relate to crimes against children. That is welcome.

I will open up the discussion.

Should any further LCMs be lodged in relation to the Crime and Policing Bill as it makes its way through the UK Parliament, the committee will return to those later for a decision on whether to recommend consent.

Are members content to delegate responsibility to me and the clerks to approve a short factual report to the Parliament on the LCMs?

Members indicated agreement.

Good morning, and welcome to the 25th meeting in 2025 of the Criminal Justice Committee. We have received no apologies and Fulton MacGregor joins us online. Our first item of business is an oral evidence session on three legislative consent memoranda, LCM-S6-57, LCM-S6-57a and LCM-S6-57b that have been lodged by the Scottish Government in relation to the United Kingdom Crime and Policing Bill.

I welcome Angela Constance, the Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs, and, from the Scottish Government, Alison Morris, Kristy Adams and Kathryn Lewis from the organised crime unit and Graham Robertson from the public protection unit. Thank you very much for joining us.

I refer members to paper 1 and to the letter from the Home Office that was circulated to members on Monday via an email from the clerks. I intend to allow up to 40 minutes for the evidence session. I invite the cabinet secretary to make some opening remarks on the LCMs.

Thank you, cabinet secretary. Those were helpful opening remarks to set the scene. I will invite members to come in with any questions that they have, but I will start with a question on the proposals on future international agreements. The committee has done a small piece of work on the landscape with regard to international co-operation in law enforcement. I was interested to read clauses 127 and 128, which set out proposals on future international agreements as they relate to information sharing for law enforcement purposes. I am interested in hearing a wee bit more detail on those particular clauses as they relate to Scotland.

It is deeply concerning that the United Kingdom Labour Government has been criticised by a coalition of charities that have said that women are

“not a special interest group”

and that they are being deprioritised, with targets cut in half and funding slashed south of the border. A range of women’s health issues appear in my constituency casework regularly. Will the minister further outline how the Scottish Government is prioritising women’s health and ensuring that women are supported through the Scottish National Party Government’s investment?

Yesterday, I had the great pleasure of attending the opening of the new energy transition skills hub in my constituency. It is a collaboration between North East Scotland College, ETZ Ltd and Shell that will power an evolving energy workforce and that will, I am confident, play its part in producing some of our future Techscaler talent.

I very much welcome the cabinet secretary’s update on the Techscaler international programme, which helps start-ups to go global and to access new markets overseas. What action is the Scottish Government taking to incentivise our ambitious founders and scale-ups to remain right here, in Scotland?,

Our next item of business is the continuation of our inquiry into the harm that is caused by substance use in Scottish prisons. Today, we have an opportunity to take evidence from the Scottish Government and I am very pleased to welcome the following witnesses: Angela Constance, Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs; Maree Todd, Minister for Drugs and Alcohol Policy and Sport; James McClellan, deputy director, community justice division; David Doris, prison policy team lead, criminal justice division; Richard Foggo, director of population health; and Alison Crocket, whole systems unit, drugs policy division. Thank you for joining us.

I refer members to papers 1 and 2. I intend to allow up to 90 minutes for the session.

I invite the cabinet secretary and the minister to make a short opening statement.

Thank you. That is noted.