Chamber and committees

I met with Action for Churches Together in Scotland on 14 June to discuss issues relating to sectarianism including the Offensive Behaviour at Football and Threatening Communications (Scotland) Bill.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-03238 on 25 November 2011. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

I met with the Scottish Inter-Faith Council on 15 September to discuss issues relating to sectarianism including the Offensive Behaviour at Football and Threatening Communications (Scotland) Bill.

I met with the Show Racism the Red Card and Show Bigotry the Red Card on 22 June to discuss issues relating to sectarianism including the Offensive Behaviour at Football and Threatening Communications (Scotland) Bill.

I met with COSLA on 14 September and SOLACE on 19 July to discuss issues relating to sectarianism including the Offensive Behaviour at Football and Threatening Communications (Scotland) Bill. No guidance has been issued to local authorities on dealing with sectarianism.

The Ministerial Delivery Group on Tackling Sectarianism was an initiative of a previous administration, when an administration changes at the end of a parliamentary term, all Cabinet Sub-Committees, Ministerial and Delivery Groups cease to exist. Information about the group can be found on the Scottish Government website using the attached link:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/About/14944/23093.

The Scottish Government has consistently championed work to tackle sectarianism through funding organisations like Sense Over Sectarianism, Nil by Mouth, the Iona Community, Show Racism the Red Card, Show Bigotry the Red Card and YouthLink Scotland to develop resources and deliver specific projects and initiatives to tackle sectarianism. During the period of the last administration we expanded the range of work being delivered from being largely focussed on school age children and young people, to also include work aimed at adults and supported the development of resources to tackle sectarianism in the workplace and work to tackle sectarianism among adult prisoners. This work continues and in the 2011-12 financial year alone we will be providing £527,000 to such organisations to work in communities, schools, workplaces and prisons to prevent abusive sectarian behaviour from occurring.

In 2007 Education Scotland, the then HMIE, published a report: Count us in Promoting Understanding and Combating Sectarianism Practical Examples from Primary, Secondary and Special Schools which aims to promote inclusive practices. The booklet brings together some examples of successful practice in promoting mutual understanding and combating sectarianism. It offers guidance on good practice and examples of resources to combat sectarianism. The report can be found at http://www.hmie.gov.uk/documents/publication/cuipepss.html. Education Scotland is building on this work by developing work in schools using the Curriculum for Excellence and, over the next few months, they will be aiming to find good practice, to help improve resources to support teaching and learning, and to support and encourage discussion across the country about how we can eradicate sectarianism through education from cradle to grave. This is a very positive step in ensuring that educational tools and approaches to tackling sectarianism are robust and fit for purpose.

The Joint Action Group – including representation from the Scottish Football Association, the Scottish Premier League, the Scottish Football League, Celtic Football Club, Rangers Football Club, Strathclyde Police and the Scottish Government – has worked in partnership to develop and deliver measures to tackle alcohol misuse, violence and sectarian bigotry associated with football. This work is also ongoing. We have introduced the Offensive Behaviour at Football and Threatening Communications and Threatening Communications (Scotland) Bill to stamp out offensive behaviour at football.

On 23 November I announced unprecedented funding of £9 million over the next three years to tackle sectarianism in all its forms and to deliver wide-ranging initiatives and projects across the country. I also announced that we are making up to £60k available in the current financial year to allow the Scottish Community Development Centre (SCDC) and Voluntary Action Fund (VAF) to pilot work in seven locations across Scotland to test the impact and effectiveness of working directly with communities to develop tailored solutions to the sectarian problems they experience, and support the delivery of those solutions.

We also published an analysis of religiously aggravated offences – Section 74 of the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2003 – covering a one year period from 1 April 2010 to 31 March 2011 on 18 November and are committed to undertaking year-on-year analysis of this aggravation so that this data can be analysed along with other available evidence currently available to map out and better target initiatives as well as informing the development of future work.

In addition I have formed, and will chair, a Ministerial Group on Tackling Sectarianism which will include the Minister for Learning and Skills; Minister for Local Government and Planning; and Minister for Sport; and Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs. This group will work together to coordinate all of the Scottish Government's activities on tackling sectarianism and ensure that all portfolios are contributing to this agenda.

I also refer the member to the answer to question S4W-03242 on 25 November 2011. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

On 18 November the Scottish Government published A breakdown of religious aggravations charges (section 74 of the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2010) in Scotland in 2010-11. We are also committed to annual analysis of the data collected in relation to religiously aggravated offences. The report can be found at:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2011/11/17154035/0.

The actions set out in the Action Plan on Tackling Sectarianism in Scotland, introduced by the last Scottish Labour-led administration, have been completed and this document is therefore historic. There are no plans to use this as the basis for future Scottish Government work to tackle sectarianism.

The Scottish Government does not hold information on the total number of public sector procurement contracts awarded in Scotland and cannot, therefore, specify the proportion of contracts that have been awarded through Public Contracts Scotland.

The Public Contracts Scotland portal was launched in October 2008, since which a total of 3,583 contracting opportunities were published on the site in Financial Year 2009-10, and 6,539 contracting opportunities were published in Financial Year 2010-11.

I have asked John Ewing, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows:

This information is not collected on the basis of individual prisoners’ attendance as some prisoners may attend Learning Centres on a number of occasions over a year. The number of attendances at Learning Centres in public sector prisons from 1 April 2007 to 30 September 2011 is as follows:

HMPs Addiewell and Kilmarnock do not record this information.