Chamber and committees

This issue was discussed fully during Open Question Time on 30 September. As the Deputy First Minister and Minister for Justice explained, the National Services Division work formed part of the wide range of advice which the Executive took into account before reaching our decision. Under the Code of Practice on Access to Scottish Executive Information, all such advice is exempt from publication.

The Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission has a duty of confidentiality to applicants whose cases are being reviewed both under statute and in terms of the privacy provisions of the European Convention of Human Rights. For this reason it is not possible to give details of individual cases. However, I understand from the Commission that up until 7 October, it had received a total of 79 cases. Final decisions to refer or not to refer the matter to the Appeal Court have been made in 5 cases and decisions are imminent in 6. A further 28 cases are under consideration, while review of 11 cases is in abeyance pending the outcome of appeals or of steps by applicants to lodge appeals. Review of the remaining 29 cases will commence as existing cases are dealt with. An additional case worker is being appointed to meet the demand.

Of the total of 79 cases received by the Commission, 19 were originally submitted to the Secretary of State for Scotland and were transferred to the Commission when it came into operation on 1^st April of this year. Thirty-two cases were received by the Commission in their first 3 months of operation and 28 cases in the period from 1 July to 7 October.Of the 19 cases first referred to the Secretary of State, 11 were received at various dates in the 12 months before the Commission assumed its functions and 8 were received prior to that.

Mr Reid's unsuccessful appeal to the sheriff, in 1997, was followed by judicial review of that decision, at Mr Reid's behest, on points of law. The Lord Ordinary's Judgement which favoured the Secretary of State was appealed by Mr Reid to the Inner House of the Court of Session. Their judgement was favourable to Mr Reid's case. It was later overturned by the House of Lords in December 1998, on appeal by the Secretary of State. Mr Reid remained legally detained throughout this period.Mr Ruddle's case is different. His appeal to the sheriff was successful. Legal advice to Ministers of the Scottish Executive was that an application for judicial review of the sheriff's judgement would not have succeeded in overturning the sheriff's decision, and would not have allowed Mr Ruddle to be kept in the State Hospital. We also concluded that the law needed to be changed. For that reason, no application for judicial review has been lodged.

The Scottish Executive operates on the basis of collective responsibility in the manner described in Partnership for Scotland. This means that all the business of the Executive must be handled with an appropriate degree of consultation and discussion. The Executive has recently published A Guide to Collective Decision-making in the Scottish Executive which provides detailed guidance for officials on arrangements for supporting collective decision-making.

It is for the EC Commission to monitor the position and take action as it judges necessary. The UK Permanent Representative to the European Union has already raised the German position with the Commission. All Member States have to comply with the Commission Decision setting 1 August as the date when beef may be exported under the Date Based Export Scheme. The majority of Member States have indicated that they will accept beef produced in accordance with DBES conditions. It would be for individual companies, rather than the government or the Executive, to seek redress in the Courts for losses incurred due to a Member State failing to implement its Community obligations.

I refer to the answer I gave to Ms Gillon's question (S1W-00900).

As I have made clear, we are urgently considering the law in relation to the detention of restricted patients in the light of the judgement in the Noel Ruddle case. In order to be within the power of the Scottish Parliament to legislate, any amendments, including any which would permit the continued detention of patients in the State Hospital, would have to be consistent with the European Convention on Human Rights.

Under the Mental Health (Scotland) Act 1984 all patients, including those with a restriction order, have a periodic right of appeal to a sheriff against their sentence. These appeal provisions were introduced following a ruling of the European Court of Human Rights in 1981. As at 17 August there were 2 such appeals set down at Lanark Sheriff Court by patients from the State Hospital, Carstairs. The sheriff must consider each such appeal on its merits. A successful appeal would not necessarily lead to discharge of the patient: for example, in the case of patients who are transferred prisoners, a successful appeal would result in a return to prison.

Very few patients in the State Hospital at Carstairs have a sole diagnosis of personality disorder. Each case is dealt with on the basis of the individual's circumstances.

The following extract from the most recent edition of the Local Authority Joint Staffing Watch (published jointly by the Scottish Executive and the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities) shows the number of full-time equivalent staff employed by Scottish local authorities at December 1998 for the provision of Planning and Economic Development services.

Planning and Economic Development Services

Local Authority	Full-time equivalent staff employed as at December 1998
Aberdeen City	170
Aberdeenshire	186
Angus	66
Argyll & Bute	68
Clackmannanshire	32
Dumfries & Galloway	95
Dundee City	140
East Ayrshire	82
East Dunbartonshire	57
East Lothian	46
East Renfrewshire	39
Edinburgh, City of	199
Eilean Siar	23
Falkirk	70
Fife	333
Glasgow City	257
Highland	149
Inverclyde	59
Midlothian	92
Moray	69
North Ayrshire	60
North Lanarkshire	204
Orkney Islands	15
Perth & Kinross	61
Renfrewshire	99
Scottish Borders	84
Shetland Islands	49
South Ayrshire	81
South Lanarkshire	136
Stirling	99
West Dunbartonshire	56
West Lothian	88
SCOTLAND	3,261