Chamber and committees

Thank you for that input, Martin.

I have a quick follow-up question about the letter that council leaders wrote to the First Minister about the unacceptable cuts to local government funding. Has COSLA received any update from the Scottish Government regarding the meeting that was requested? Will a meeting take place and, if so, what are leaders hoping to achieve from it? Can I hear from either Eileen Rowand or Gail Macgregor on that?

That would be useful.

Mental health nurses went above and beyond during the pandemic. However, many nurses, across all psychiatric services, have found themselves in dangerous situations as they have had to restrain patients without the support of a psychiatric doctor, security team or police presence, because of the strain on our NHS during the Covid-19 pandemic. Many of those nurses have only recently graduated from university. What additional measures can the Scottish Government put in place to help to protect mental health nurses who are on the front line?

Reports from the Scottish Qualifications Authority show that, in 2020, young women made up only 28 per cent of higher physics students and 24 per cent of advanced higher physics students. Those statistics are the same as they were when the Scottish National Party came to power, in 2007. Does the cabinet secretary agree that it is vital to encourage young women to study STEM subjects in schools? Will she commit to ensuring that the next generation of women feel empowered to pursue STEM careers and continue to close the gender gap?

Three weeks ago, the chamber stood united to condemn violence against women. We remembered women who had had their lives cut tragically short and we promised to improve the safety and wellbeing of women in Scotland.

During that debate, I mentioned that we needed to legislate better to eliminate violence against women. One way of doing that would be to end the not proven verdict, as it is commonly used in sexual crime, particularly in rape cases. Several women’s rights organisations, including Rape Crisis Scotland, have supported the ending of the not proven verdict; their position is clear that that court ruling must go.

During the Scottish National Party’s time in government, the number of sexual crimes has more than doubled. The conviction rate for rape currently stands at 46.1 per cent, which is lower than that for other crimes. In 2019-20, the not proven verdict was used as an equal acquittal verdict 74 times in rape and attempted rape cases. That figure makes up 44 per cent of the acquittal verdicts that were issued in the 300 cases that proceeded to court in Scotland. Those statistics prove that the not proven verdict disproportionately impacts women, which is why the Scottish Conservatives are committed to ending it through our victims law.

The Scottish Conservatives first called for the abolition of the not proven verdict more than a year ago. In 2019, “Equally Safe: Scotland’s strategy to eradicate violence against women” was published. It contained a commitment to

“undertake research into jury decision making to improve understanding of the factors that influence juries’ decisions in solemn criminal cases.”

The strategy was published almost three years ago, but the Scottish Government announced that consultation was finally under way only a few days ago. Similarly, the Scottish Greens called for the not proven verdict to be scrapped in their 2020-21 manifesto. Why the delay?

Should the Scottish Government continue to dither over the scrapping of the not proven verdict, the justice system could continue to fail more women.

I have only four minutes and I would like to make some progress—I am sorry.

We cannot continue to ignore a justice system that favours the perpetrator over the victim. If we do, the words that we all spoke three weeks ago were for nothing and will have achieved nothing.

Today, women and girls are more confident in reporting incidents. Sadly, low conviction rates and incidents of a not proven verdict jeopardise that confidence, which could lead to fewer attacks being reported to begin with. The conviction must be aligned to support women and girls.

We need to go further than ending the not proven verdict. We need other laws, such as Michelle’s law and Suzanne’s law, to be fully implemented to support victims and their families. The Scottish Conservatives have pushed for better legislation to support victims, and the Scottish Government must realise that the current justice system is not fit for purpose.

When we look at the amendments, it is clear that political parties are not worlds apart in looking at ending the not proven verdict, but progress has been at a snail’s pace. I understand that the justice system is complex and interrelated and I realise the Scottish Government’s desire for a consultation. However, we need to realise too that many are frustrated by the time that it has taken for the Scottish Government to take the matter seriously. I can understand why a woman who has been subjected to a heinous crime such as rape might feel at present that the justice system will not allow for them to have closure, free of stigma, should the verdict be viewed as not proven.

I look forward to the day when women and girls feel that the justice system works for and not against them. Ending the not proven verdict is the right thing to do. It is an important step towards stronger legislation that protects women and girls, and I am sure that MSPs of all parties will support that objective.

Like Elena Whitham, I refer to my entry in the register of members’ interests. I am a serving councillor in North Lanarkshire Council.

Last week, we heard from witnesses who raised concerns about the cost of a short-term let licence. How much would the panel members expect a three-year short-term let licence to cost? Do they believe that the cost could harm small businesses and their ability to function?

Andrew Mitchell has indicated that he wants to come in. After that, I will move on to my next question.

Tony Cain and Leon Thompson want to come in—I am not quite sure in which order, because I cannot see what is in the chat function.

Thank you for your contributions. Do any of the witnesses have concerns about the inclusion of traditional bed and breakfast accommodation in the definition of a short-term let? Can you provide reassurances to those who own such accommodation?

This time round, I will start with Andrew Mitchell.