Bail and Release from Custody Bill passes stage 1
The Bail and Release from Custody (Scotland) Bill has passed its first vote in the Scottish Parliament, despite members expressing considerable reservations about whether it will achieve its intended purpose.
MSPs voted by 70 to 29 to approve the general principles of the Scottish Government measure. Liberal Democrat and Green members voted with the Government; the Conservatives opposed the bill; and Labour abstained.
In its stage 1 report Holyrood's Criminal Justice Committee found itself unable to reach a concluded view on the bill, which aims to reduce the number of prisoners held on remand, and improve the support offered to those released after a prison sentence. Nearly 30% of those currently in prison are on remand awaiting trial, one of the highest proportions anywhere.
Opening the debate, Cabinet Secretary Keith Brown said the bail proposals would enhance the role of justice social work so it had more opportunity to inform the courts on bail decision making – though the timescale within which a decision on bail has to be made will not change.
On release from custody, pre-release planning will begin sooner and scheduled releases will no longer take place on a Friday or just before a public holiday.
There also will be statutory minimum standards for thoroughfare support for remanded or sentenced prisoners.
The Conservatives' Jamie Greene was one of a number of members in the debate who criticised the lack of data available to support the Government's approach. The simple questions why the remand proportion was so high, and whether the bill was necessary to fix the cause, had not been answered. The judiciary had made representations that the bill would “introduce an unnecessary, cumbersome and artificial process” without changing outcomes on bail decision making; victim organisations had voiced "deep unease" about the narrowing of the courts' powers to refuse bail.
Katy Clark, for Labour, said the bill represented a "missed opportunity" and should be substantially redrafted; the Liberal Democrats' Liam McArthur said his party would support the general principles but that "an awful lot of work" needed to be done at stages 2 and 3 to command the confidence of those who had expressed unease.
Replying, Mr Brown said he would continue to listen and engage as the bill moved into stage 2.