Sturgeon's first bill programme unveiled
Justice, land reform and succession measures all feature in the first legislative programme under First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, annonced today – as does the cancellation of historic poll tax debts.
Announcing the Scottish Government's legislative programme for 2014-15, Ms Sturgeon said its clear focus was not on additional devolved powers but on how the Parliament used its existing powers "fully, creatively and constructively, in the interests of all those we serve".
Among the measures most of interest to the legal profession, a Land Reform Bill will take forward the first of the proposals from the Land Reform Review Group’s final report, published earlier this year. A policy statement on land rights and responsibilities will be published next week, along with a consultation on a range of proposals to be included in the bill, but it is intended that it will include powers for ministers to intervene where the scale of landownership or the conduct of a landlord is acting as a barrier to sustainable development; the establishment of a Scottish Land Reform Commission; measures to improve the transparency, accountability and availability of information concerning landownership; and the removal of business rates exemptions for shooting and deerstalking estates.
A Succession Bill will implement a number of the recommendations contained in the Scottish Law Commission's Report on Succession. This will be a technical measure which may progress under the new
procedure for implementing SLC reports, and will precede a consultation in the coming year on further legislation on succession which will aim to radically overhaul the current law.
The Fatal Accident Inquiries Bill will provide the legislative framework to implement the remaining recommendations of Lord Cullen’s review, and modernise the way FAIs are handled in Scotland.
On community justice, a bill will provide the legal framework for implementing changes to community justice structures, with the aim of reducing reoffending across Scotland. This forms part of the Scottish Government’s response to the report of the Commission on Women Offenders, and the Audit Scotland
report on reducing reoffending, both published in 2012.
Also for the justice system, a Human Trafficking and Exploitation Bill will provide police and prosecutors with clear powers to detect and prosecute those responsible for human trafficking, ensure that relevant agencies work together, and provide clear rights for victims to access support.
Elsewhere, an Education Bill will further progress the Government’s support for Gaelic education and for promoting children’s and parental rights; a Higher Education Governance Bill will implement a number of the key recommendations of the review led by Professor von Prondzynski, embedding the principles of democracy, transparency and democratic accountability in the governance of higher education institutions; a Carers Bill will extend the rights of carers, including young carers, ensuring that they can continue to care and to have a life alongside caring; a Public Health Bill will include measures to reduce the attractiveness and availability of non-medicinal e-cigarettes and tobacco, as well as dealing with situations of neglect and ill treatment in care settings; and a Harbours Bill will provide an improved legislative framework for trust ports.
The annual Budget Bill will provide parliamentary approval for the Government's spending plans; and the Community Charge Debt Bill will end the collection of historic community charge or poll tax debts, including ongoing payment arrangements. "I don't want people to fear being on the electoral register because of decades-old debts from discredited legislation", Ms Sturgeon said, though the measure is likely to prove controversial.
Work will also continue on eight other Government bills still before the Parliament, including Criminal Justice, Legal Writings, Community Empowerment, Mental Health, Welfare Funds, Food, Air Weapons and Licensing, and Prisoners (Control of Release).
Concluding her address to the Parliament, Ms Sturgeon said: "I hope I have given an indication today of how the Government I lead will carry itself – in a way that is open, listening, accessible and decentralising. And with the strongest focus on growing our economy, protecting public services, tackling inequality and empowering our communities."