Liam Kerr

19 Feb 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether the next Victim Taskforce papers will include a paper, "catalogue on initiatives", which had been included in previous papers but not the most recent set.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The agenda for the next Victim Taskforce meeting on 10 March 2021 will include discussion on the catalogue of initiatives.

19 Feb 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to reduce further the number of outstanding unpaid work hours given as part of community payback orders.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: There are currently no plans to further reduce unpaid work hours given as part of community payback orders (CPOs). The Community Orders (Coronavirus) (Scotland) Regulations 2021 will, subject to approval by the Scottish Parliament, reduce unpaid work hours …

19 Feb 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the recommendation made by the Justice Committee in the paper, Report on post-legislative scrutiny of the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland)Act 2012 - The Police Service of Scotland, whether it has introduced a resolution plan system for when a local authority does not agree …

Answer · Humza Yousaf: It is for the Scottish Police Authority and Police Scotland to develop their engagement with local partners. However, there are now significantly more local elected members involved in scrutiny of policing, with each local authority having its own scrutiny co…

19 Feb 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish follow-up modelling of the number of trials in backlog, in light of the announcement that court business will be restricted until the end of March 2021.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS) publishes, on a monthly basis, a workbook that details the throughput of criminal cases and the forecast of outstanding scheduled trials in the High Court, Sheriff Court and Justice of Peace Court. This shows t…

19 Feb 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the recommendation in the 2018 Inspectorate of Prosecution in Scotland paper, Thematic Report on the Victims Right to Review, whether the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service notifies all victims of a decision not to prosecute their case.

Answer · James Wolffe QC: The recommendation made by the Inspectorate of Prosecution was that COPFS should work towards a system of notifying all victims of decisions not to prosecute, whether through the use of IT solutions or otherwise. The Inspectorate recognised that that the righ…

19 Feb 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of 79% of respondees to its recent consultation on the matter selecting this option, whether it will expand the number of victim statements that can be given at court to all victims of cases under solemn proceedings as well as victims of certain cases tried under summary procee…

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The findings of the consultation will inform continued engagement with the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service and victim support organisations on the detail of proposed changes to the Victim Statement Scheme. Th…

19 Feb 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it allocated the £2 million of capital funding given to victim and witness support organisations in 2020-21, and what information it has regarding how this money was spent.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: The victim support budget has provided substantial investment, via health boards, to support forensic medical services, with £2 million per year over 3 years since 2018-19. In 2020-21, funding was provided to further improve health boards’ forensic medical se…

19 Feb 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to its news release of 12 January 2021, Reforming parole, whether the proposals will extend to temporary release from prison.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Scottish Government are committed to putting victims’ rights at the heart of the criminal justice The content of the announcement on 12 January specifically related to changes to parole regulations. Individuals who have joined the Victim Notification …

19 Feb 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether details of convictions regarding common assaults of emergency workers will be published under their own category as part of the upcoming Criminal Proceedings in Scotland statistics.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Crimes and offences are grouped in the Criminal Proceedings in Scotland statistics to provide a high level overview. These groups have been chosen in consultation with users. Proceedings and convictions for assaults against emergency workers over the past ten…

19 Feb 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much of the Victim/Witness Support budget is spent on victims' organisations that are based in the north east.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: In 2020-21 £9.8 million of the £18.7 million victims / witness support budget was allocated to a range of victim support organisations. Victim Support Scotland have local offices in Aberdeen and Dundee. The Rape Crisis Scotland National Advocacy Project also…

18 Feb 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has offered Scottish Prison Service (SPS) staff regular COVID-19 testing on any occasion prior to the pilot testing that is to begin at SPS sites, as a result of the enhanced asymptomatic testing programme.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: SPS staff have previously had access to tests while asymptomatic through their Health Board if it was required. In addition SPS staff, as members of the public, have been able to access testing when they are symptomatic and as keyworkers, SPS staff have been…

15 Feb 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many applications for support from Victim Surcharge Fund have been received from victim support organisations; what the total value is of these; how many (a) have been approved, (b) have been rejected and (c) are yet to be processed; how much it has paid out so far, and what the expe…

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The closing date for applications to the Victim Surcharge Fund from victim support organisations was 12 February 2021. Five applications have been received. More detailed information, including amounts awarded to successful applicants, will be available once…

15 Feb 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason it is no longer planning to publish a tracker monitoring the implementation of the recommendations of the Independent Review of Complaints Handling, Investigations and Misconduct Issues in Relation to Policing, which was led by Dame Elish Angiolini.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: As I informed the Justice Sub-committee on 15 February 2021, I fully recognise the importance of transparency and am committed to sharing information on progress in a way that is meaningful and accessible to a range of audiences. A list of all 111 recommendat…

12 Feb 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to the prioritisation of taxi drivers for the COVID-19 vaccine, following the vaccination of all over-50s and people with underlying health conditions.

Answer · Mairi Gougeon: The Scottish Government follows the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) Guidance in the planning of vaccine delivery. This evidence based guidance advises that the single greatest risk of mortality from COVID-19 is increasing age, and that …

10 Feb 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) legal aid firms and (b) law centres it estimates will apply for the Coronavirus Resilience and Recovery Fund for Legal Aid, and what the expected average payment will be.

Answer · Ash Denham: The Scottish Government recognise the important role of legal aid providers in supporting their clients and the justice system in Scotland, and also recognise that some will have encountered financial difficulties as a consequence of the Coronavirus pandemic.…

4 Feb 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it will implement qualified one-way costs shifting, which was legislated for under the Civil Litigation (Expenses and Group Proceedings) (Scotland) Act 2018, and what preparations it has made for any increase in cases raised by pursuer solicitor firms where cases have been held back…

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Qualified one-way costs shifting (QOCS) will be commenced as soon as possible. Commencement needs to aligned with the production of court rules which are drafted independently of the Scottish Government by the Scottish Civil Justice Council. We are working c…

26 Jan 2021 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the delivery timetable for the three disability payments.

21 Jan 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what financial support is being put in place for supply teachers during the current COVID-19 lockdown.

Answer · John Swinney: The Scottish Government has provided local authorities with? £80 million of additional investment in education staff, sufficient for the recruitment of around 1,400 additional teachers, including supply teachers, and 200 support staff this year. In addition,…

20 Jan 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that, because of financial issues, Police Scotland might have to reduce numbers by around 4,000 officers and/or move them to civilian roles, and whether it will consider increasing Police Scotland's funding to prevent this.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Police Scotland’s Strategic Workforce Plan was presented at the Scottish Police Authority (SPA) Board meeting on 22 January 2021. This plan has been developed to ensure that the service is best placed to meet changing demands, and enable Police Scotland to id…

19 Jan 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what relevant communications were listed in action 1b of the latest Victims' Taskforce workplan; how these were prioritised, and when it anticipates action 1b will be completed.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Scottish Government officials have undertaken an initial information gathering exercise to establish the scope of this work and determine a suitable approach to reviewing publications and other materials provided to victims as they progress through the crimin…

19 Jan 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what work has been completed to date on developing questionnaires to capture information about the experiences of witnesses, including children, at court; whether it considers it currently satisfies the reporting requirement of section 14 of the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act 2018 and, if…

Answer · Humza Yousaf: Section 14 of the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act 2018 requires the Scottish Ministers to place before Parliament a report on various matters relating to the operation of the Act during the first 3 years after commencement. This includes a requirement to provid…

19 Jan 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when the review of government funding to support organisations outlined in the latest Victims’ Taskforce workplan will be completed, and what the scope of the review is.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The review referred to is a recommendation from the report ‘Transforming Services for Victims And Witnesses’, commissioned by the Scottish Government, COPFS and Victim Support Scotland and published in September 2020 https://www.gov.scot/binaries/content/doc…

19 Jan 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government by what date it expects further engagement to take place following the publication of the consultation, Improving Multi-Agency Risk Assessment and Interventions for Victims of Domestic Abuse, as outlined in the next steps action 3e, in light of the latest Victims' Taskforce workplan refe…

Answer · Christina McKelvie: The Scottish Government is committed to tackling violence against women and girls through Equally Safe, our co-owned strategy with COSLA. This strategy identifies effective multi-agency risk assessment processes as a key component in addressing violence again…

13 Jan 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether the Transforming Parole proposals allow victims to speak at parole hearings, and what the reasons are for the position on this matter.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The changes which will come into force on 1 March 2021, through the Parole Board (Scotland) Amendment Rules 2021, set out a procedure for victims and family members of victims, who are registered with the Victim Notification Scheme (VNS), to be silent observe…

13 Jan 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether only victims registered with the Victim Notification Scheme will be able to observe parole hearings under the Transforming Parole proposals.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The changes which will come into force on 1 March 2021, through the Parole Board (Scotland) Amendment Rules 2021, set out a procedure for victims and family members of victims to be silent observers at parole hearings. Only victims who are registered with the…

12 Jan 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, for what reason the 2019-20 Scottish Prison Service (SPS) annual report did not record information regarding addiction prevalence testing and, if this information is no longer recorded, (a) for what reason the SPS reached this decision and (b) how the SPS will monitor the scale of drug …

Answer · Humza Yousaf: I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Interim Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows: Addictions Prevalence Testing (APT) for Performance Measurement purposes was suspended in November 2019 and therefore not incl…

11 Jan 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what additional support it is providing to households that are undertaking home learning during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Answer · John Swinney: Scottish Government has invested £25m to support digital inclusion for school-aged learners across Scotland. At end-December 2020, almost 59,000 devices and over 10,000 connectivity packages had been distributed to learners and more will have been distributed…

5 Jan 2021 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether victims’ organisations were able to apply for support from the Victim Surcharge Fund by the end of 2020 and, if so, (a) how many applications were received and (b) what the average bid was.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: The Victim Surcharge Fund opened for applications by victim support organisations on 14 January 2021. Organisations have until 12 February to apply for funding. We aim to make the first payments from the Fund by the end of March 2021. In line with our intent…

5 Jan 2021 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much of the Barnett consequentials announced for 2020-21 it has formally allocated.

22 Dec 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish its plan to vaccinate people (a) overall and (b) in high-risk groups against COVID-19 in the NHS Grampian region, and what the timescale will be.

Answer · Mairi Gougeon: The Scottish Government has published its Deployment Plan which sets out how we will work as fast as supplies allow to vaccinate everyone over the age of 18 and those aged 16 and 17 who are frontline health and social care workers, young carers or have unde…