Chamber and committees

I know that members will be looking more deeply into that aspect.

I am keen for our session to focus on progress on the recommendations, but it might be helpful to step back a bit first. As you said, given the size of the prison population in Scotland, it is, sadly, inevitable that there will be some deaths in the prison estate. It might be helpful if you were to outline a bit of context regarding the experience of mortality in prisons. What are the common underlying reasons, for example?

Our next item of business is to review the Scottish Government’s response to our post-legislative inquiry on the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act 2018. I refer members to paper 3. I invite members to come in with any comments or points that they would like to make on the Scottish Government’s response, or to give any suggestions for further follow up.

Will the cabinet secretary confirm how much the Scottish Government has invested in policing this year and how much has been allocated to the body-worn camera programme?

The white paper aims to escalate tougher penalties for so-called recreational drug users in England and Wales.

I urge members to support the Government’s motion this afternoon, and I look forward to monitoring progress on the issue across Scotland.

Is the member aware of the cross-committee work in the Scottish Parliament that involves the Criminal Justice Committee, Social Justice and Social Security Committee and Health, Social Care and Sport Committee? Together, we are looking at how we support the work around tackling drug harm and reducing drugs deaths in Scotland.

I echo the comments that have been made by colleagues this afternoon: every life lost to drug use is a tragedy for the loved ones, friends and communities that are left behind.

I welcome the opportunity to speak in today’s debate in support of the Government motion that recognises the scale of the job in hand to reduce drug harm, how our approach in Scotland is being developed and what more is required. I thank the organisations that submitted briefings ahead of the debate.

No one is in any doubt whatsoever that, despite the overall reduction in deaths recorded as drug related, the scale of the challenge to meaningfully address drug harm is long term, complex and cross-cutting. Chronic and multiple complex disadvantage, poor physical and mental health, unstable housing and family breakdown can predispose people to high-risk drug use. Deprivation, the ageing population of people who use or have used drugs, and the risky behaviours of some people who use drugs are all complex issues in their own right, never mind trying to address them collectively across communities, sectors and organisations.

In recent years, the suite of measures that have been launched to tackle the drug deaths crisis in Scotland deriving from the work of the Scottish Drug Deaths Taskforce has gained traction. There are two basic principles that underpin that work: first, that drug-related deaths are preventable—we have heard much about that in the chamber this afternoon; and secondly, that the Scottish Government must focus on what can be done within our powers.

The national mission has underpinned much of the work across Scotland to support better access to treatment, improve front-line drug services and increase access to residential rehabilitation. I am particularly pleased to note the increased funding to community and grass-roots organisations, and the fact that practice involving work with families has developed further—Brian Whittle made that point. That front-facing work sits at the heart of how we make life better for families and individuals impacted by drug harm. As Michael Marra suggested, that work is also very important in providing eyes and ears on changing patterns of drug use.

I know from engagement with colleagues supporting the delivery of drug services in the north-east that, although the national mission has been welcomed, the wider issue of funding arrangements risks impacting on the effectiveness of workforce planning. Given that we all must be invested in maintaining the momentum of the work, I would be keen to engage further with the minister on that particular point.

I welcome the recent Scottish Government paper “A caring, compassionate and human rights informed drug policy for Scotland”, which members have alluded to this afternoon. It sets out a new way of developing our drugs laws based on evidence and informed by those living with drug harm and those working to alleviate drug harm. That relates to the Parliament’s cross-committee work on tackling drug harm and reducing drugs deaths. That work followed on from an evidence session that the Criminal Justice Committee held with people with lived experience of drug use, who told us very clearly that they wanted to see a cross-sector approach to tackling the issue.

In response to that, members of the Criminal Justice Committee, the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee and the Social Justice and Social Security Committee agreed to meet jointly. Our remit is to consider the implementation of the recommendations of the Scottish Drug Deaths Taskforce. I know that the minister was involved in the early stages of that work when she was convener of the Social Justice and Social Security Committee. That approach reflects the need to consider aspects of the criminal justice system, health policies and wider social and economic matters such as poverty, unemployment, unstable housing and family breakdown, which we have discussed in the chamber. Members have met jointly four times since February 2022.

I am pleased to hear the member’s positive remarks about the cross-committee work. The spirit of the work is to approach such cross-cutting issues in a more appropriate and collegiate way, and I am happy for the member’s committee to take the lead at the next meeting.

An issue that we considered from the outset was how to progress the establishment of safer drug consumption rooms in Scotland. Ahead of our meeting next week, we asked the Lord Advocate whether she could provide an update on her consideration of a pilot of a safer drug consumption facility in Glasgow. The minister helpfully outlined the Lord Advocate’s commitment to that in her response to Jackie Baillie’s intervention. In her response to the joint committee, the Lord Advocate indicated that she

“would be prepared to publish a statement of prosecution policy to the effect that it would not be in the public interest to prosecute users of that facility in terms of section 5(2) of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 for simple possession offences committed within the confines of the facility.”

That paves the way towards the development of a pilot of a drug consumption room service in Glasgow and is greatly welcome, particularly given that Glasgow City has had the highest rate of drug deaths over the past five years.

I have to say that that approach is a far cry from the United Kingdom Government’s white paper, “Swift, Certain, Tough: New Consequences for Drug Possession”.

New data released this morning shows that the vast majority of Scots view immigration as a positive benefit that enriches Scotland culturally and economically. Can the First Minister update the chamber on his interactions with the United Kingdom Government about labour shortages in key sectors as a result of the UK’s archaic immigration policies?

I call Donald Cameron, to be followed by Rona Mackay. I ask members and witnesses to be as succinct as possible, so that we can get in as many questions as possible.

I am pleased to welcome our second panel of witnesses, who are Stephen McGowan, Deputy Crown Agent, Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service; and Eric McQueen, chief executive, Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service.

I will begin with the same opening question that I asked our earlier panel. During scrutiny last year, both organisations that are here today painted a concerning picture of the state of your budgets, although that was relieved in part by extra funding. I invite the Crown Office and then the Courts and Tribunals Service to tell us briefly what your experience of the financial situation has been for 2023-24 and what, if any, concerns and commentary you have as we approach the 2024-25 settlement.