Chamber and committees

I refer the member to the answer to the question S6W-32496 on 10 January 2025. 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 criminal exploitation of young people through involvement in the illicit drug trade is a significant concern for the Scottish Government. Partners on the Serious Organised Crime Taskforce (SOCT), which I chair, continue to use every means at their disposal to disrupt serious organised crime, including illicit drugs, and to raise awareness of the impact it has on individuals, including young people, and our communities.

The Scottish Government published 'Practitioner Guidance on Criminal Exploitation' in June 2023 on behalf of the SOCT. The guidance aims to maximise Scotland’s coordinated and joined up response to all exploited individuals, making it easier for practitioners across Scotland to support children and vulnerable adults who have been victims of exploitation. The SOCT also held a criminal exploitation conference in June 2024 to publicise the guidance.

The latest SOCT Progress Report, published in December, details some of the work over the past year, including projects such as the Daniel Spargo-Mabbs Foundation’s very successful Drugs Education Pilot in Grampian schools and the “Fearless” drugs campaign which was launched with young people at a school in Edinburgh.

Serious Organised Crime Taskforce: progress report 2024 - gov.scot

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

During seven weeks of training, new prison officers receive training on a range of strategies and interventions designed to support those in our care, this includes a dedicated learning outcome on the effects of alcohol use.

SPS Health and College teams are also conducting a scoping exercise which will help further identify Officer needs when supporting those in our care. This exercise will shape delivery of future training and will incorporate the newly published Mental Health and Alcohol & Drug strategies.

The Scottish Government is working with partners in the North-East of Scotland on a pilot to evaluate the impact of Free School Meal data sharing on university admissions. Partner organisations leading on the work are Aberdeen City Council, Aberdeenshire Council, Robert Gordon University and the University of Aberdeen.

Partners are currently finalising the necessary data protection impact assessments in order to begin data sharing in early 2025. Plans for evaluation of the pilot are currently being finalised with evaluation to take place later in 2025.

Data on collisions which cause injury and take place on the road network, including adjacent pavements and cycle lanes, is collected by Police Scotland as part of the GB-wide dataset known as STATS19.

Within STATS19, vehicles involved in injury road collisions can be recorded as ‘bicycle’ or ‘electric motorcycle’. However, there is currently no systematic way of determining which of these vehicles would be described as illegal e-bikes.

This information is not collected by the Scottish Government but The Scottish Government’s Community Safety Policy team has recently received one piece of correspondence concerning a collision involving an e-bike in the Aberdeen area.

Officials are working collaboratively with the UK Government to understand potential legislative change in this area.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information. I have asked Police Scotland to write to you on this matter.

This is an operational matter for Police Scotland. I have asked Police Scotland to write to you on this matter.

I refer the member to the answer to the question S6W-32496 on 10 January 2025. 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 powers of the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission (SCCRC) to review alleged miscarriages of justice are provided for in the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995 (1995 Act).

There is no limitation within the 1995 Act on the SCCRC investigating evidence provided to it during a previously reviewed case with any decision to investigate evidence provided to it during a previously reviewed case being an independent matter for the SCCRC.