Question reference: S5W-36057
- Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
- Date lodged: 11 March 2021
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Current status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 24 March 2021
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to change the 12-month threshold that applies to the presumption against short sentences.
Answer
The extension of the presumption against short sentence is part of an evidence-based approach to rehabilitation, both in communities and custody. A firm focus on prevention and effective community interventions has helped see Scotland’s reconviction rate fallen to its lowest level since comparable records began.
Short sentences disrupt many of the things we know are most likely to help reduce reoffending such as housing, employment, family relationships and access to health care and support. Evidence shows that individuals released from a custodial sentence of 12 months or less are reconvicted nearly twice as often as those given a Community Payback Order.
There are no current plans to change the presumption against short sentences of 12 months or less.