Chamber and committees

Designation of Nature Conservation Marine Protected Areas (ncMPAs) is underpinned by the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010 in inshore waters (0-12 nautical miles) and the UK Marine Coastal Act 2009 in offshore waters (12-200 nautical miles).

Classification of Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) and Special Protection Areas (SPAs) are governed by provisions within the Conservation (Natural Habitats &c.) Regulations 1994 (as amended) in Scotland.

Criteria differs for each site however, the overarching principles remain the same. Site selection for MPAs undertakes a science-based approach that is set out in separate site selection guidelines for ncMPAs , SACs and SPAs .

NHS National Services Scotland, National Services Division (NSD) and NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde (NHS GGC) are working to improve waiting times for access to the highly specialist Complex Mesh Surgical Service. The ongoing need for service recovery following the Covid-19 pandemic, across all areas of need in terms of women’s health, has resulted in waiting times which are disappointing, and the frustration felt by women facing significant waits is wholly understandable. For this we apologise.

However, patients are being seen, surgeries carried out, and efforts are being made to increase capacity.

The Service now also writes to patients once they are added to the outpatient waiting list, advising that their referral has been received and offering an estimated waiting time for their first appointment. This letter provides a QR code that links to the recently upgraded Complex Mesh Surgical Service Website where patients can access information about what patients can expect during their visit.

Waiting times from decision on treatment to surgery are now generally within the 12 week treatment time guarantee.

More generally, the Scottish Government is committed to eradicating long waits and we’ve already seen a significant reduction in the longest waits (over 2 years) since targets were announced. We are committed to providing further reductions through our £1bn NHS Recovery plan to increase health service capacity. We are also working closely with Health Boards to support implementation of alternative pathways and initiatives to support people being seen more quickly and increase capacity to ensure sustainability.

The Scottish Government is aware of this proposal. During the Lord Advocate’s statement to Parliament on 16 January 2024, I am aware there was discussion of this issue. The Lord Advocate explained that:

‘… It is misleading to suggest that I could simply attend the appeal court with a list of cases and tell the court of criminal appeal to quash the convictions. There is such a process but, for reasons of sound public policy and in recognition of the constitutional role of our court of appeal, prosecutors always have to be able to explain why they are no longer relying on a conviction. As I have explained, not every Horizon case will involve a miscarriage of justice. In some cases, there was sufficient evidence to support a criminal conviction. That is demonstrated by the material from England and Wales that shows that, of the cases that have been referred to the Court of Appeal in England, only some—not all—have resulted in a conviction being quashed because of a miscarriage of justice. Therefore, it is not as simple as my providing a list of convictions to be quashed.’

On 13 March 2024 the UK Government introduced the Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill which, if passed, will automatically quash on coming into force any convictions which fall within the scope identified on the face of the Bill. Details of the UK Bill can be found on the UK Parliament website: Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill - Parliamentary Bills - UK Parliament

The Scottish Government believes that the best way to deliver a quick, fair and equal solution for all affected sub-postmasters is through a UK-wide Bill, and will continue to press the UK Government to deliver a solution that provides this.

We will introduce Scottish legislation if necessary, but any such legislation cannot be passed in the Scottish Parliament until after the UK Bill has been passed to ensure full compatibility with both the UK legislation, and the UK compensation scheme in which the Scottish Government has no locus.

I refer the Member to the answer to PQ S6W-26520 on 18 March 2024 for information about correspondence between myself and UK Government Ministers on this matter.

The UK Government announced on 22 February that they will introduce legislation to reverse only the convictions of sub-postmasters convicted by courts in England and Wales and introduced a Bill in the Westminster Parliament on 13 March. Scottish Government officials participate in a Devolved Administrations Working Group established by the UK Government which meets regularly to discuss issues relating to the development of legislation to quash the wrongful convictions of sub-postmasters and sub-postmistresses. This will assist in the development of equivalent legislation that will apply to sub-postmasters and post office employees convicted by courts in Scotland if the UK Government does not change its position on legislating only to reverse the convictions of those convicted in courts in England and Wales.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers .

The First Minister's letter to the Prime Minister of 10 January was published on the Scottish Government website at: https://www.gov.scot/publications/first-minister-letter-prime-minister-post-office-horizon-cases/

Letters I sent to the Secretary of State for Justice, Alex Chalk MP, and the Minister for Enterprise, Markets and Small Business, Kevin Hollinrake MP and the letter which the Deputy First Minister sent to the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and Minister for Intergovernmental Relations concerning legislation to reverse convictions that may have resulted from the use of Post Office Horizon evidence are available on the Scottish Government website at https://www.gov.scot/publications/post-office-horizon/letters-to-uk-government.

It is for the UK Government to decide whether to publish letters sent with an expectation of confidence by UK Ministers to the Scottish Ministers.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-25624.on 18 March 2024. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers .

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-25624 on 18 March 2024. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers .

The Scottish Government is aware of the reported comments by the Lady Chief Justice of England and Wales.

Any expedited process for hearing appeals is a matter for the judiciary, who are independent of Scottish Ministers. This process would also only be able to consider those cases which have been referred back to the courts and would not be able to address, for example, any cases where consideration by the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission has been delayed by difficulties in obtaining timely information from the Post Office, or where no person has approached the Commission for their case to be reassessed.

Given that the UK Government has introduced legislation for England & Wales the Scottish Government plan to ensure, insofar as possible, equal treatment for Scottish sub-postmasters. Any Scottish solution will need to be compatible with both the proposed UK Government legislation and the UK compensation scheme in which the Scottish Government has no locus.

On 22 February, the Under-Secretary of State for Enterprise, Markets and Small Business stated that the UK Government would introduce legislation to reverse only the convictions of sub-postmasters and sub-postmistresses convicted in courts in England and Wales. This followed the Scottish Government making clear on 10 January in a letter from the First Minister to the Prime Minister that UK-wide legislation would be the appropriate response to this issue. The position of the Scottish Government was also made in further letters from the Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs.

Following the UK Government announcement on 22 February, I wrote to the Minister the following day to make clear that the Scottish Government remained of the view that the best way to ensure a solution that treats all affected sub-postmasters across the United Kingdom equitably is for the Westminster Parliament to legislate to overturn the convictions of those affected across the whole of the UK, and asking the UK Government to reconsider its approach on this matter.

On 13 March, the UK Government introduced its Bill to reverse the convictions of affected sub-postmasters and post office employees convicted in courts in England and Wales. The Deputy First Minister wrote to the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities and Minister for Intergovernmental Relations on 14 March urging him to make good on the commitment he made at the meeting of the Inter-Ministerial Standing Committee on 12 March to consider extending the Bill to cover convictions in courts in Scotland and Northern Ireland.

This reflects the fact that the cause of these wrongful convictions, wherever they occurred, is the defective Post Office Horizon IT system and the failure of the Post Office to disclose relevant information about it to prosecutors.

However, if the UK Government maintains its position that it will legislate only to reverse convictions of sub-postmasters convicted in England and Wales, we will introduce legislation in the Scottish Parliament to reverse the convictions of affected sub-postmasters in Scotland. Any such Bill will have to be passed after the equivalent UK Bill to ensure that the approach is compatible with the approach taken in the UK Bill and sub-postmasters convicted in Scotland whose convictions are reversed can access the Horizon compensation scheme operated by the UK Government.

Scottish Government officials are continuing to engage with UK Government officials on this matter.