MSPs call on Government to revisit named persons code of practice status
MSPs should have the chance to vote on the code of practice covering the controversial named persons scheme before the code becomes law, a Holyrood committee has reported.
In a stage 1 report on the Children and Young People (Information Sharing) (Scotland) Bill, the Delegated Powers & Law Reform Committee calls on the Scottish Government to revisit its approach to the code of practice for information sharing under the named persons scheme, on the basis that it has a more significant role than the "explanatory document" as put forward by Deputy First Minister John Swinney.
Given the importance of the code, it states, ministers should consider setting it out in subordinate legislation, so that MSPs would be able to vote on the final version.
While welcoming the opportunity for consultation on the proposed draft of the code provided for in the bill, the committee highlights the binding nature of the code and its central importance in responding to the concerns of the Supreme Court in relation to the original named persons scheme, and in seeking to ensure that a proportionate approach is taken to information sharing under the 2014 Act. "In light of this, the Committee considers that it would be appropriate for the final version of the Code to be subject to approval by the Parliament before it could be issued", the report concludes.
This requirement should be "set out on the face of the bill".
Convener Graham Simpson MSP commented: “We explored the code of practice with the Deputy First Minister who viewed it as an explanatory document. Our committee considers the code to be more significant than that.
“It has a central role in the operation of the sharing of information about children and young people, and it places obligations upon professional people such as social workers, teachers and health care employees."