Chamber and committees

Following the pressures of recent years, which have been brought on by the global pandemic, Police Scotland has been very clear that it will prioritise 999 calls, and the Scottish Government supports that position. The average answer time for 999 calls is around five seconds, and for 101 calls it is approximately two minutes. However, 101 is a non-emergency service, and callers are reminded throughout their wait that if it is an emergency or an escalating situation, 999 should be dialled. All young people should understand that.

Knowing how and when to contact our emergency services is a key skill that we want our children to have at the earliest possible age. Educational information on emergency services is delivered through the health and wellbeing curriculum, and there is a range of materials to assist teaching professionals who are delivering that learning. Furthermore, Police Scotland, the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and the Scottish Ambulance Service work directly with schools and local authorities to ensure that their role is widely understood among children and young people.

The Scottish Legal Aid Board’s most recent report shows that the number of grants of civil legal aid in 2021-22 was slightly above the long-term five-year, 10-year and 15-year averages. Within that total, there has been significant growth over time in work relating to adults with incapacity—primarily guardianship applications and renewals. That has been partly offset by a reduction in the number of other types of cases, including family law and personal injury cases, the vast majority of which are now undertaken on a no-win, no-fee basis.

In order to assist with its work to monitor the accessibility and availability of legal services, SLAB recently began a research project that is aimed at exploring how trends in legal aid activity at the subnational level compare to the national trend and vary between areas of law. The research will analyse data relating to the location of the applicant, solicitor and court. SLAB intends to publish the full results of its analysis when it is completed.

The Scottish Government’s violence against women and girls unit funds a linked project that employs advocacy workers, a project co-ordinator and administrative support, and funds the delivery of a national helpline. Both projects are interdependent, and the advocacy workers act as initial points of contact prior to help being provided by a local solicitor.

Since 2019, there have been three uplifts across all legal aid fees. In 2021, there was £10 million in other funding, including for 40 traineeships, and a further £11 million package of reforms is to be implemented in May.

We are committed to working with the legal profession to develop an effective and evidence-based mechanism for keeping legal aid fees under review. Considerable work has therefore been undertaken since the review to support and reform legal aid. The Scottish Government consulted on potential legal aid reforms before the pandemic and will be undertaking further targeted engagement to progress the manifesto commitment on legal aid reform this year.

Access to legal aid is an important aspect of supporting individuals to claim their rights through the courts and should rightly be recognised as an invaluable public service. It is also important to try to build consensus around a reformed system of legal aid. That is why, along with the Law Society of Scotland and the Faculty of Advocates, I will co-chair a working group to look holistically at the future of the legal profession in Scotland. That deep dive will be critical as we move forward.

I, too, thank Rona Mackay for bringing this important issue to the chamber.

The impact of imprisonment on families is, as Families Outside’s report makes clear, significant and often unseen. That makes it all the more essential that the issues are openly discussed and debated. This is not someone else’s problem; we all have a responsibility to listen to those families and to take action.

I take the opportunity to acknowledge, as others have done, the vital work that Families Outside does. I know that it is a lifeline for many families who are affected by imprisonment.

Twenty years ago, when I worked to support young people at risk of homelessness—many of whom faced addiction issues and had experience of care and childhood trauma—it often felt like I was on my own trying to hold everything together when one of my young folk was in prison. It is extremely exhausting for everyone, not least their families.

The report covers a number of extremely important issues. I cannot do all of them justice in the time that I have, so I will focus on some key points.

The report emphasises the negative impact of imprisonment and calls for the use of prison to be truly a last resort. This Government has been clear that, although prison will always be necessary for those who pose a risk of serious harm, we need to look again at how custody is used in a modern and progressive Scotland. There is no reason why we should have the highest imprisonment rate in western Europe. We know that short periods of imprisonment, including on remand, do not address the underlying causes of offending or support rehabilitation.

It is important to take a second to understand that many people who are in prison are often victims of criminal acts so, although they may be offenders, they are indeed victims. We also know that many people who are in contact with the justice system have experienced multiple and severe disadvantage. We should not use imprisonment to address those wider societal harms.

As the report highlights, the impact on the children and families of people in custody can be devastating and wide ranging. That is why we are taking action to shift the balance towards greater use of community-based interventions, which we know are more effective than short-term imprisonment in reducing reoffending. That includes continued investment in community justice services.

In 2023-24, the Scottish Government will invest a total of £134 million in community justice services. That includes £123 million to local authorities to support the delivery of community-based sentences and interventions, such as alternatives to remand. That is not soft justice by any means. It can be transformative justice at the heart of our communities.

We have also introduced legislation. Members have referenced the Bail and Release from Custody (Scotland) Bill, which will shortly be debated in the chamber at stage 1. That bill focuses on two of the key issues that are raised in the report: the impact of remand and improving support for people leaving prison.

Remand removes people from their families, homes, jobs and communities. We must remember that they are mostly people who have been accused of an offence and have not been convicted of any crime. The bill seeks to refocus how remand is used so that custody is reserved for those who pose a risk to public safety or to the delivery of justice.

The bill also seeks to improve the pre-release planning and support that is provided for people leaving prison to enable their successful reintegration. We know that holistic, well-planned support for people leaving prison can reduce their risk of reoffending and improve their outcomes. The bill’s provisions are intended to support that.

That is alongside on-going investment in national third sector throughcare services. We know that throughcare is hugely important—that has been referred to. We need to provide one-to-one support for people who are leaving prison.

That investment currently totals £3.7 million a year. I know first hand, from my work in homelessness services, how crucial support is at the time when someone is liberated. Our third sector partners provide that critical lifeline, and we must strive to ensure that supports are in place in advance of people leaving prison. That is why it is important to embed the sustainable housing on release for everyone—SHORE—standards across all areas, via local authorities’ rapid rehousing transition plans.

The report also highlights the importance of specific financial and emotional support for families of people in prison. That includes the critical role that prison visitor centres play. The Scottish Government has provided funding—which is currently up to £800,000 a year—since 2016-17 to support the development of PVCs across Scotland. I am delighted that there are now 12 of those centres. We remain committed to maintaining funding for prison visitor centres in 2023-24.

I take the opportunity to say a huge well done to Recovery Enterprises Scotland in East Ayrshire, which has provided the PVC service at HMP Kilmarnock since January. I know the team personally, and I know how committed it is to supporting folk and their families during difficult times.

As highlighted in the report, the Scottish welfare fund can be an essential source of support. The fund, which was established in 2013, is administered by local authorities. It provides two forms of discretionary awards: a crisis grant and a community care grant. The community care grants can be awarded to prisoners who are leaving prison, to help them to establish or maintain a settled home in the community. That is invaluable support, especially when someone’s previous tenancy has been lost and their belongings have been cleared. The grants can also be provided to family members, to assist in the care of an individual who is on temporary release from prison.

We must also recognise the gendered nature of supporting a family member in prison, especially during a cost of living crisis. Women bear the cost, and income maximisation is vital. Therefore, we must support those families to ensure that they receive all the support that they can get.

I highlight the work of the Scottish Prison Service in supporting family contact and mitigating the impact of the cost of living crisis for prisoners and their families. That includes trying to keep prices in the prison canteens at a minimum and reviewing the application of the prisoner wage policy. Although the vending machines in prisons are a matter for the SPS, I hope that it heard Emma Harper’s call to ensure that pricing is reasonable. The example that she gave was quite stark.

The SPS is also committed to making visits as family friendly as possible. The approach might look different in each establishment, but that includes reviewing visiting timetables in light of family feedback, having family days, and supporting virtual visits where appropriate. The SPS is currently revising its family strategy, informed by active consultation with prisoners and their families. That strategy aims to support and encourage people in the SPS’s care to play an active role in building strong and stable families.

I will take a second to talk about the stark statistic that Collette Stevenson told us about earlier. The number of children who are experiencing the trauma of having a family member in prison is actually higher than the number of children who are in families in which there is divorce. I reassure Collette Stevenson that the Scottish Government and the SPS are actively working with Timpson and other employers to figure out how we can best support them to give people the opportunity to thrive.

I assure Michael Marra that we have established a cross-portfolio ministerial working group to explore the urgent issues that he brought to the chamber. However, I would be really happy to meet him on a one-to-one basis to discuss those issues, because his points were really important.

In response to Richard Leonard, I take the opportunity to recognise Allan Marshall’s family and their stoic and steadfast seeking of justice for him. However, as members will understand, I cannot comment any further at the moment, due to the on-going issues at hand.

I say to everybody out there who has a family member in prison that we have heard your voices loud and clear through the report.

I fully appreciate the need to ensure that abuse is recognised across the justice system, in both criminal and civil cases. In relation to child contact cases, the legislation requires the court to have regard to abuse and the risk of abuse. The Scottish Government is committed to preparing a discussion paper on the interaction between criminal and civil cases. A key part of that will involve considering how all forms of abuse can be tackled in order to prevent the situations that were clearly narrated by Fiona Hyslop.

The victim surcharge fund has opened three times to applications from organisations that provide support to victims of crime. So far, 11 organisations—including Victim Support Scotland, Dumbarton District Women’s Aid, Edinburgh Women’s Aid and Angus Women’s Aid—have shared more than £917,000 of grant funding to provide practical help directly to victims, including victims of domestic abuse.

Examples of support that has been provided by the fund include the meeting of clothing and other essential expenses for those escaping domestic abuse and the installation of alarm and video systems to help victims to feel safe.

I know that, like me, Maggie Chapman has a keen interest in that area.

The Scottish Government is clear that women with no recourse to public funds should be offered the same level of support that other women in Scotland are and that they should not face disadvantage. We continue to urge the United Kingdom Government to ensure that all victims of domestic abuse are afforded the same protections and support. Our ending destitution together strategy presses the UK Government to extend the destitution domestic violence concession to make it available to anyone who is in the UK as a dependant on someone else’s visa or protection status, regardless of the timescales of that status. We will continue to make the case in the strongest of terms.

Absolutely. I can give Beatrice Wishart the assurance that we will seek to ensure that it is communicated effectively.