Chamber and committees

We strongly support the need for long-term change and will support all efforts to make sure that we have a robust range of alternatives to custody available across the country, because, for many offenders, they represent a more effective approach.

On the particular issues that we are looking at today, can you say a little more about the package that will be put in place around the proposed releases? When there have been such releases in the past, there has sometimes been poor planning. I know that some work has been done on that. We also know that all the evidence seems to suggest that the better the planning that is put in place over a period, the more likely it is that the person will not reoffend. Liam Kerr spoke about reoffending rates. Can you say a bit more about the planning for the package of support that will be available?

I am not attempting to reopen that debate—I am just trying to get a snapshot of where we are now. Given that very few victims are notified at the moment, it is likely that victims will be notified in only a small percentage of the proposed early releases.

It is believed that almost 800 Iranians have been killed because of the missile and air strikes undertaken by the United States and Israel. Those strikes are clearly in defiance of international law. They have inflamed regional tensions and there has been loss of life and damage in other countries across the middle east. Will the cabinet secretary outline whether the Scottish Government has made any representations to the US consulate in Edinburgh in relation to concerns that international law has not been followed by the US? Does he think that that kind of action would be appropriate?

After a strong local campaign, in 2017, the Scottish Government announced that the Ardrossan to Brodick route would continue and that a redevelopment of Ardrossan harbour was needed. I welcome the announcement today but, given that we are nine years on, the cabinet secretary will appreciate that local people want to know when the port will be fully operational again. Can the cabinet secretary therefore advise when the work that is needed to start a tendering process is likely to start and be completed, when redevelopment work is likely to start and when the harbour redevelopment could be finished to allow the new ferries to operate?

I am pleased to speak in the debate on behalf of Scottish Labour. As a member of the Delegated Powers and Law Reform Committee, I was involved in the bill’s scrutiny. I thank my colleagues on the committee for their work throughout the process and the stakeholders who engaged with us during our evidence sessions.

The bill seeks to modernise Scots contract law by introducing a statutory set of default rules on contract formation and remedies for breach. Its provisions came in response to recommendations from the Scottish Law Commission, which concluded that certain parts of the current regime may be unclear for many people in that no single piece of legislation covers the topic.

The bill aims to improve certainty and accessibility in this area of law, and it is hoped that there will be no unintended consequences. As has been mentioned by those who have spoken so far, the vast majority of those who have given evidence, supported the bill on the grounds that it would make things simpler for laypeople.

Among the bill’s provisions is the abolition of the postal acceptance rule, which provides that a contract is formed when an acceptance of an offer is put in the post, as opposed to when it is received. When I spoke in support of the bill at stage 1, I welcomed that this change would allow the law to reflect the role that current communication technologies play. However, I must also say that—the committee discussed this—we simply cannot rely on the Royal Mail as perhaps we once could in previous decades, particularly before it was privatised.

The bill also allows far greater flexibility by allowing parties to contract out of the proposed rules that are set out in it. The bill does not represent a radical departure from, or a total transformation of, the current common law regime. It simply aims to codify what is believed to be the current law.

The bill does not deal with various aspects of contract law, including the law on the interpretation of contracts or the law on penalty clauses.

At stage 1, I highlighted that there had been a great deal of consensus on the bill’s provisions, and its proposals continue to receive broad support from legal academics and business groups. As has been said, the Law Society of Scotland has welcomed the bill and believes that it will improve the law’s accessibility for a range of users. The reforms are expected to improve access to justice by enabling users who might lack a high degree of familiarity with contractual agreements to set terms that are best suited to their needs with relative ease and without reference to case law or commentary. It was also said in the discussion around the bill that it might mean that Scots law is more attractive internationally.

The main substantive amendment to the bill at stage 2 was the insertion of a section on contractual retention, which clarified when and on what terms a party to a contract can utilise retention as a remedy. The bill as amended confirms that a party to a contract can

“temporarily withhold or suspend performance of an obligation that is due to be performed under the contract”

in the event of a breach by the other party, in anticipation of such a breach or

“in relation to an obligation subsisting when the contract is ended ... as a result of”

either a

“breach or an anticipatory breach.”

We welcome that change to the bill, as we believe that it serves to make general provisions of the law more accessible to individuals and small businesses. As the Law Society of Scotland has stated, such a remedy should be

“available in a flexible manner to facilitate more complex transactions and contractual arrangements that Scottish financial institutions (and other large Scottish business entities) are routinely party to.”

Scottish Labour will support the bill at stage 3, as we believe that it represents a careful, considered and proportionate step towards modernising Scots contract law. We hope that the Scottish Government will work closely with legal practitioners, businesses and advice services to ensure that the new statutory framework is well understood and smoothly implemented, with clear guidance, effective communications and on-going review. I thank everybody who has been involved in what has been a very uncontroversial piece of legislation, which I hope is successful in passing today.

::In the past decade, North Ayrshire Council has made cuts of more than £90 million to local services. Last week, residents were notified that the local health and social care partnership is consulting on cuts to social care, with one option being to restrict social care to people who are assessed as being at critical risk. Will the cabinet secretary intervene to provide fair and sustainable funding for North Ayrshire Council so that social care and other local services are protected from further cuts?

::To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that local authorities receive fair and sustainable funding settlements. (S6O-05561)

In the past decade, North Ayrshire Council has made cuts of more than £90 million to local services. Last week, residents were notified that the local health and social care partnership is consulting on cuts to social care, with one option being to restrict social care to people who are assessed as being at critical risk. Will the cabinet secretary intervene to provide fair and sustainable funding for North Ayrshire Council so that social care and other local services are protected from further cuts?

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that local authorities receive fair and sustainable funding settlements. (S6O-05561)

:Thank you.