Ministers publish justice system plan through to 2026

A vision and action plan for Scotland’s justice sector over the life of the current Parliament has been published by the Scottish Government.

Entitled The Vision for Justice in Scotland, the new strategy sets out a series of standards to which ministers aim to see the justice system measuring up, along with a timeline of actions through to 2026 bringing in a series of reforms.

Writing in the foreword, Cabinet Secretary Keith Brown says the document "builds on our 2017 Justice Vision and Priorities – A just, fair, resilient Scotland".

He states that while fundamental tenets such as fairness and respect for the rule of law "remain an absolute constant", justice services must transform to meet the needs of people in today’s society – which includes ensuring that all parts of the justice system deliver person-centred services and embed trauma-informed practices.

"This is especially important when we consider how women and children experience justice", he writes. "We must recognise how the system, as historically designed by men, for men, can perpetuate societal inequalities for women and children."

Among the specific commitments in the paper:

• Victims will take a more prominent role in cases, experience fewer delays and be supported in their recovery. A Victims’ Commissioner will be appointed and there will be increased use of pre-recorded evidence. Restorative Justice services will also be made available across Scotland by 2023.
• As well as an ambition to prevent violence against women and girls by tackling societal attitudes of misogyny and gender inequality, the vision prioritises systemic changes to improve the experiences of women and children, building on the recommendations of Lady Dorrian’s report on the Management of Sexual Offences and ensuring access to a "Bairns’ Hoose" (by 2025) for every child victim or witness who needs it.
• With evidence demonstrating community interventions are more effective than short prison sentences at reducing reoffending, the strategy seeks to reduce the need for imprisonment through early intervention and providing greater access to community justice alternatives. 

Those commitments reflect the stated priorities for action. Among the actions scheduled for 2022-23 are a Hate Crime Strategy; a new National Community Justice Strategy; extending restorative justice services across Scotland; legislation to reform the law on bail and release from custody; implementation of non-legislative recommendations of the Dorrian review, and consultation on legislation arising from the review; and a new model for female custody.

The vision will be underpinned by a requirement for the whole sector to ensure people are treated with empathy and kindness, for example by avoiding additional trauma by having to retell their stories. The plan also enshrines the need for collaborative work across public services to improve outcomes for individuals, focusing on prevention and early intervention.

Part of the vision is fair access to justice services with no financial barriers, but legal aid reform is simply listed as one of the actions taking place between 2023 and 2026, as is "review how offending is dealt with by the summary justice process".

Civil justice is mentioned in relation to expanded availability of mediation and arbitration services.

Launching the document, Mr Brown said: "This strategic blueprint sets out key priority areas including improving the experience of women and girls in a justice system historically designed by men, taking forward reform to address inequalities. It also stresses the need for a fresh look at the use of custody and firmly puts victims and the needs of victims at its centre.

"Underpinning this, the vision makes clear the need for services to be person centred and trauma informed to avoid re-traumatising people as they journey through the system. And, fundamentally, it stresses the importance of holistic early interventions that leverage the whole of government and public services to reduce offending and the causes of offending at the outset."

During a debate on the paper in the Parliament yesterday, Jamie Greene for the Conservatives said the problems in the system were "chronic", had not seen progress despite previous changes, and that the system was seriously underfunded, with "systemic funding problems" in legal aid.