Victims of domestic abuse are among those invited to share their views as part of a Scottish Parliament inquiry into the financial implications of leaving an abusive relationship.
The Social Justice and Social Security Committee is running the inquiry to find out what support women leaving abusive relationships can access, how public sector and social security rules and practices take account of financial issues in these circumstances and how much information and advice women have access to.
Since 2018-19, Police Scotland has recorded over 60,000 incidents of domestic abuse each year, however, research from Scottish Women’s Aid suggests that the actual figure is much higher as not all incidents are reported to the police.
Reports of domestic abuse can rise substantially over the Christmas period, a time when family finances can be at their most stretched. Research from charities including Refuge and Women’s Aid has found that this, alongside the pressures caused by the cost-of-living crisis, can effectively trap victims of domestic abuse.
The Committee’s inquiry will explore economic abuse, a form of coercive control where an abuser restricts a person’s ability to get, use and keep money or other economic resources.
It is also likely to cover the Scottish Government’s work on violence against women and girls, including its Fund to Leave pilot project and its Equally Safe strategy. The Fund to Leave offered women up to £1,000 to pay for the essentials they need when leaving a relationship with an abusive partner and was delivered by Women’s Aid groups.
Collette Stevenson, Convener of the Social Justice and Social Security Committee, said: “The Christmas period should be a time where women can get together with their families. But sadly for many women suffering from abuse Christmas can be a lonely and terrible time, with economic abuse trapping them in abusive relationships.
“We know that over 60,000 incidents of domestic abuse are reported to the Police in Scotland each year, and we want to use this inquiry to learn about the support available to women in this awful situation and get an idea of what else can be done.
“If you have any experience of this issue, or work for a charity or public body that supports women in this situation we want to hear from you. Share your views with us by responding to our call for views.”
The call for views opened on Friday 13 December, and will close on Thursday 20 February.
To ensure that people can respond in full, the Committee welcomes receiving anonymous responses, where appropriate.
The Criminal Justice Committee has backed the Police (Ethics, Conduct and Scrutiny) (Scotland) Bill at Stage 1. However, they have concerns over whether the reforms will sufficiently improve the experience of officers and members of the public when it comes to dealing with police complaints.
In the Committee’s Stage 1 report they say the introduction of a statutory Code of ethics and a duty of candour send a clear message about the culture of Police Scotland and the behaviours that are expected of police officers and staff.
However, concerns are raised that these two proposals could be largely symbolic and not fundamentally improve the culture within policing and public confidence in its ability to deal effectively with police complaints.
Concerns are also raised that the Bill, in its current form, will have little impact on the length of time taken to consider and conclude police complaints. The Committee say this is a vital issue and one which the Bill leaves unresolved.
The Committee say they heard evidence of unacceptable behaviours and practices within Police Scotland and have questioned the robustness of the oversight mechanisms in place, including that of the Scottish Police Authority (SPA), and of whether the culture within police is changing.
Several provisions in the Bill are welcomed by the Committee, which they say will improve the accountability of police officers. This includes proposals that would enable gross misconduct proceedings for officers to commence or continue to a conclusion, regardless of whether an officer retires or resigns.
Changes that would allow the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner (PIRC) to consider allegations of gross misconduct that come to light over 12 months after an officer has left the force are also welcomed by the Committee. They recommend the SPA monitor this process to ensure that these cases are being dealt with timeously.
The Committee has welcomed increased powers for the PIRC and greater transparency around its work. They recommend that the SPA and Police Scotland should be under a duty to comply with the PIRC’s recommendations and that the PIRC publishes the responses to its recommendations, unless there are exceptional circumstances for not doing so.
The introduction of barred and advisory lists for police officers, to ensure that those who are found guilty of gross misconduct cannot gain employment in another police force in Great Britain, are also supported by the Committee.
As the report was published, Criminal Justice Committee Convener, Audrey Nicoll MSP, said:“Our Committee is backing the general principles of this Bill as we believe the police complaints system must improve, both for those making a complaint and those who are the subject of a complaint.
“There are measures in the Bill which we support and believe will improve the robustness, accountability and transparency of the police complaints system. These include the commencement or conclusion of misconduct proceedings regardless of whether a person leaves the police service, and the introduction of Scottish advisory and barred lists.
“We also welcome greater powers for the PIRC and increased transparency around their investigations.
“However, we are unsure whether the provisions in the Bill will sufficiently improve the experience of officers and members of the public of the complaints system.
The Convener added:“We have concerns that the Bill has no impact on the length of time taken to consider and conclude police complaints, which is a key issue for those involved. Questions also remain about the robustness of the oversight mechanisms in place within policing and whether the culture within policing is changing for the better.
“We recognise that the vast majority of police officers and staff are dedicated, honest and do an incredibly difficult job in challenging circumstances.
“Our Committee believes an effective, fair, and transparent complaints system is essential to help strengthen public confidence in policing in Scotland and although we back the general principles of this Bill, we believe it could go further to achieving this.”
A Holyrood Committee visited a building with potentially dangerous cladding in the Leith area on Tuesday this week to meet with residents and hold talks with a fire safety expert.
The visit followed the launch of a call for views on legislation which would give Scottish Ministers new powers to assess and remediate buildings in Scotland with unsafe cladding, following the 2017 Grenfell Tower fire.
The Scottish Parliament’s Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee, which is leading scrutiny of the plans, is now encouraging other people in Edinburgh, who live in or own properties with potentially dangerous cladding, to respond to the public consultation on the Scottish Government’s Housing (Cladding Remediation) (Scotland) Bill.
The legislation seeks to give Scottish Ministers powers to assess and remediate buildings with unsafe cladding, including where consent of the owners cannot be provided.
Under proposals in the Bill, the Scottish Government would also create and maintain a Cladding Assurance Register to give residents confidence about the assessment and works undertaken once those buildings are remediated.
The Bill would also give Ministers the power to establish a Responsible Developers Scheme, to support engagement by developers and encourage them to pay for or carry out remediation work.
Such a scheme would likely include agreement to pay for remediation costs by developers, with potential sanctions for developers that are eligible but do not join or fail to comply with the terms of membership.
As the Scottish Government has not carried out public consultation on the Bill, the Committee’s call for views will be critical in providing stakeholders including owners and residents of properties in buildings with potentially unsafe cladding, developers, insurers, surveyors, and fire safety experts an opportunity to comment on the proposals.
The call for views is now open and runs until Friday 8th December 2023.
Following the visit, Committee Convener, Ariane Burgess MSP, said: “Cladding was a major contributing factor to the fire which destroyed Grenfell Tower in June 2017, one of the UK’s worst modern disasters, and we want people in Edinburgh to have their say on this new Bill.
“Visiting a property affected by cladding alongside one of Scotland’s leading fire safety experts gave us a real insight into the risks that residents are currently forced to live with and the substantial challenges behind the remediation work needed in buildings like the one we visited, right across the country.
“Meeting with Edinburgh residents living in a property with potentially unsafe cladding allowed us to discuss the impact this is having on them financially through increased insurance rates and the increased levels of anxiety and fear that comes along with living with the heightened fire risks.
“As our consultation is the only opportunity for the public to comment on the proposals in the new Bill, we are encouraging people in Edinburgh who live in or own properties with potentially dangerous cladding to respond before the 8th December.
“The Committee understands the urgency in addressing the issue of unsafe cladding, and this Bill represents a critical step towards achieving safer conditions for all those affected in the Lothian area.”
Chartered Building Surveyor and fire safety expert, Phil Diamond, who accompanied the Committee on the visit said: “It was good to see Brooker Diamond’s involvement in North Edinburgh recognised by the committee’s visit.
“We carried out the Single Building Assessment which is a very complex process and the development posed many varied challenges which will require a comprehensive scheme of remediation.
“We look forward to contributing to the assessment programme and remediation of more blocks across Scotland and help to make homes safer as part of the future work flowing from the Cladding Remediation Bill.”
HOLYROOD COMMITTEE HEARS OF CONCERNS FIRST HAND FROM HOME OWNERS AFFECTED IN EDINBURGH
The site visit by the entire committee charged with leading scrutiny of this Bill, gave credence to the seriousness of their intent to ensure that the proposals are properly understood and reviewed by the MSPs.
The urgent and important need to address the issues in domestic residential accommodation, of risk to life and property, is recognised by the introduction of this bill in an expedited process.
If approved by the Scottish Parliament, then the Royal Assent could be on or before 24 July 2024. It could then have a commencement date at the beginning of September 2024.
Chris Ashurst – the Group Coordinator of High Rise Scotland Action Group said: “ I wholeheartedly welcome the committee’s pro-active efforts to understand the concerns, experiences and perspectives of those living in ‘high-rise’ homes.
“It is their safety physical and mental, and the safety of their homes and property which is and must be the supreme concern of the legislator, and must shape the new law.
“Owners have been able to express: –
their dismay at suggestions that the very builders who caused the problems, might instruct their own appointed surveyors and professional advisors to decide what defects need to be remedied and, or, decide on and implement their own remediation or mitigation measures.
The conflict of interest and the financial liability could, (and would be) seen by owners as reason to mistrust and doubt the integrity of any such assessment or plan. It remains to be seen what confidence lenders and insurers would place in such a process
The feeling that the revised criteria introduced in December 2021 are too rigid, and that no building would be able to satisfy them. The frustration on the part of some that the widened brief had exceeded the original one to an unacceptable degree and that there should be some element of grading of risk, based on an assessor’s professional assessment of any risk.
“I wholeheartedly endorse the request from the Convenor of the Committee that owners should make submit their views in the consultation to them by Friday 8 December using the links provided.”
A Holyrood Committee has published a new report highlighting the challenges in supporting culture to thrive within communities across Scotland.
The report from the Parliament’s Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee found that while progress has been made in implementing a place-based approach to culture, there are still “several significant challenges” facing local and national government that need to be addressed to “realise the ambitions” of the Scottish Government’s culture strategy.
The Committee concluded that the “cross-cutting” nature of the challenges facing Scotland’s culture sector requires “a whole-system approach” across different levels of government.
During the inquiry the Committee gathered evidence on best practice and barriers to cultural participation within different communities across Scotland, with visits to Wester Hailes and Craigmillar , Dumfries, and Orkney.
Members also heard from a wide range of stakeholders, many of which agreed on the importance of cultural work being grounded in local communities, as outlined in the Scottish Government’s culture strategy.
The report’s findings outline the need for “much greater prioritisation in practice” being placed on community-led culture, which it says should be “at the heart” of the sector.
It also suggests the potential of existing community empowerment mechanisms, which could be used to improve place-based cultural delivery at the local level.
The Committee also noted that the funding of community-based cultural organisations and projects, local government cultural services, and of publicly owned community spaces where cultural activity can take place have all been put under pressure.
The financial constraints within the current economic environment are identified as posing a “significant challenge” to the successful implementation of place-based cultural policies, with the Committee calling on the Scottish Government to set out how it will “accelerate the implementation of innovative approaches to the funding of the culture sector”, an issue it will pursue further through its forthcoming pre-budget scrutiny.
The Committee also raised its concerns that some cultural and community assets were said to be becoming “less available, less affordable, and at risk of closure”, recognising that “the loss of community spaces is likely to impact on the access to culture for those communities”.
The report urges the Scottish Government to address these challenges and incorporate the Committee’s findings and recommendations into the forthcoming refresh of the Culture Strategy Action Plan and Budget 2024-25.
Commenting on the report, Committee Convener, Clare Adamson MSP said:“Through our work on this inquiry, we have seen first-hand the positive impact of place-based cultural work in communities across Scotland.
“Support for community-led culture can help enrich the cultural landscape and further empower local communities, particularly those which face the greatest barriers to participating in cultural life.
“However, the Committee’s report has clearly demonstrated that while progress has been made, there are significant challenges facing both national and local government in delivering Scotland’s ambitions for a place-based approach to culture.
“We urge the Scottish Government to take our findings and recommendations on board as it refines its forthcoming Culture Strategy Action Plan and its Budget for 2024-25 to ensure that culture can thrive in our local communities.”
The Scottish Parliament’s Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee have visited Edinburgh City Youth Café, 6VT, as part of their ongoing inquiry into youth violence.
The Committee have been considering Petition PE1947: Address Scotland’s culture of youth violence which “calls on the Scottish Parliament to urge the Scottish Government to address the disturbing culture of youth violence in Scotland.”
As part of their evidence gathering, the Committee agreed to engage directly with individuals, families and communities affected by youth violence.
Visiting 6VT, the Committee joined a drop-in session with the Cairn Service which offers support to children and young People, aged 10-25 from the Edinburgh area, who been victims or witnesses of crime.
During the visit the Committee met with 6VT CEO, Dot Horne, Operations Manager, Fiona Horne and young people to discuss the impact of youth violence, the role that social media plays in fuelling this and how safe people feel in their communities.
Commenting after the visit, Committee Convener, Jackson Carlaw MSP said: “The Committee agreed that hearing first-hand from those who have been impacted by the issues raised in the petition was essential to our considerations and any recommendations we may make to the Scottish Government.
“Visiting 6VT in Edinburgh has provided us with the opportunity to directly engage with young people affected by youth violence and hear about the changes they want to see to make their communities feel safer.
“By continuing to engage with communities and organisations involved in tackling youth violence, we hope to gain deeper insights into the challenges faced and to be able to identify appropriate actions for Government to take in order to tackle the key issues.”
A new parliamentary inquiry into the Scottish Government’s public service reform programme has been announced.
Holyrood’s Finance and Public Administration Committee wants to examine the detail of the reform programme, which is focused on digitalisation, innovation, estates, public body landscape and procurement.
As part of this work, the committee will examine how public bodies are working to achieve the government’s plans to make efficiencies, while ensuring effective delivery of public services, in 2023-24 and beyond.
It will also consider the government’s ambitions to:
keep the public service pay bill costs at 2022-23 levels and
return the public sector workforce “broadly to pre-Covid-19 levels”.
“Further information on the government’s plans for reform and workforce levels were expected in the Scottish Budget 2023-24 but did not materialise due to ongoing economic turbulence.
“Our committee therefore wants to look at how public bodies are working to put in place the government’s ambitions for reform.“We also want to establish from where in the public sector reductions in headcount to pre-pandemic levels will be made, and to what timescales.
“Clarity and transparency around these issues are crucial, during what is an uncertain time for the public sector.”
A call for views from public sector bodies, academics, think tanks and other interested parties has been launched today, with a closing date of 1 May 2023.
To inform this inquiry, the committee is seeking written views from Scottish public bodies on their plans for public service reform in their sectors, and others with a view on how the reform programme is working in practice and how it is delivering effective and efficient services.
The committee is particularly keen to hear from:
all types and sizes of public sector bodies from across the public sector
others affected by the Scottish Government’s public service reform programme, and
think-tanks, academics and commentators on progress with, and outcomes from, the reform programme.
Appearing today before the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee, the Edinburgh Festivals call for the Scottish Parliament and Scottish Government to look again at the inclusion of residents’ personal primary homes in the planned short term lets legislation.
The Festivals welcome plans by the Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice, Housing and Local Government to extend the licensing date for existing hosts, as a valuable opportunity to reconsider how the national framework is being interpreted across the country, and to adjust provisions at the margins to avoid unintended consequences.
Commenting ahead of her Committee appearance, Julia Amour, Director of Festivals Edinburgh said: “Edinburgh’s Festivals are frustrated at the extent of plans to regulate brief stays in residents’ personal primary homes – compared to commercial secondary lets where we understand the need for regulation – especially when the regulatory plans have no apparent regard to the collection of evidence or the assessment of impact.”
Speaking to the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee this morning, Ms Amour will ask Committee members to note the following:
Personal primary letting (home-sharing or home-letting) is being conflated with the more complex area of commercial secondary letting whereas it needs to be treated differently
Personal primary letting has no effect on the current housing crisis, given that it is simply individuals using their own homes rather than purchasing additional properties
Personal primary letting is being treated similarly to commercial lets, in terms of regulations and costs, having an effect on income opportunities for residents in their own homes during a cost of living crisis
The national regulation scheme excludes certain categories (eg visiting homestay students where arrangements have been approved by an educational institution) and so why not others (eg visiting homestay event workers)
The Committee will also be asked to note that although the Cabinet Secretary has said temporary exemptions of up to six weeks do not need to comply with mandatory and additional licence conditions, the City of Edinburgh Council has decided to apply many such conditions to temporary exemptions for primary letting.
Ms Armour said: “These local interpretations highlight that the provision in the framework for local temporary exemptions is not achieving its intended purpose, and we now have an opportunity to look at this again and apply an exclusion at national level.
“The Edinburgh Festivals are concerned that these developments will be a serious disincentive to city residents who want to open their own homes to guests for a brief period.
“Without the use of primary home lets, the Festivals estimate that 27% of people in the city for August peak season would not be able to find accommodation, with such lets of particular importance to the workers, artists and performers who transform Edinburgh into the world-leading festival city.
“The Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society estimates a third of their programme could be lost in 2024. This contraction would obviously have a negative impact on the 4,000+ jobs and over £200m in direct additional economic impact which the Festivals bring, as well as weakening the wider leisure and visitor economy employing 44,000 in Edinburgh alone.”
Ms Amour will conclude: “We ask the Committee to recommend that Scottish Government consider excluding primary residential letting activity (home-sharing and home-letting) for major festivals and events from the proposed legislation, in the knowledge that such activity has no effect on the housing crisis in the city and will safeguard the major economic, cultural and social opportunities that the festivals provide to city residents and to Scotland as a whole.”
Changes to the care of children and the involvement of children in the criminal justice system are to come under scrutiny at the Scottish Parliament.
The Education, Children and Young People Committee will consider the proposals laid out in the Children (Care and Justice) (Scotland) Bill and would like to hear the views of people from across Scotland.
The Bill changes how the justice system approaches offences committed by people under the age of 18. This will include allowing most 16- and 17-year-olds to attend a Children’s Hearing, rather than a court.
Changes would also be made to regulations around accommodations for young people. Under the proposals 16- and 17-year-olds, accused of or guilty of offences would not be held in Young Offenders Institutions or prisons, but instead would be sent to secure accommodation. The Bill would also change how care services providing residential accommodation to children are regulated.
The Committee is opening a call for views so it can hear the views of organisations supporting young people in conflict with the law, young people and parents. The Committee is also very interested in hearing the views of legal professionals, secure accommodation providers and victims of crime.
Following the end of the consultation the Committee plans to hold a series of evidence sessions to discuss the Bill, before reporting its findings to the Parliament later in the year.
Sue Webber, Convener of the Education, Children and Young People Committee said: “The Bill we will be scrutinising will allow all 16- and 17-year-olds to access the Children’s Hearings System for the first time.
“This aims to safeguard those at risk of harm and change how the justice system deals with young people who have committed offences. It also introduces a range of further measures designed to improve the way that children are treated, including ensuring no young person under the age of 18 will be sent to a Young Offenders’ Institution or prison.
“We want to get a thorough understanding of how the proposals in the Bill might impact on people across Scotland, including young people themselves, children’s support organisations and youth justice bodies.
“Please share your views on these proposals with our Committee before the 17 March 2023 deadline.”
The twin stresses of the COVID-19 pandemic and the significant turbulence in the UK energy market must be tackled to address fuel poverty according to a letter issued yesterday by the Scottish Parliament’s Social Justice and Social Security Committee.
The Committee has been examining the Scottish Government’s Tackling Fuel Poverty Strategy to ensure it meets the needs of low-income households.
The impact of ongoing high inflation was a key concern highlighted in the Committee’s letter. A significant cost of living increase, caused by high inflation, is likely to push more people into, or further into, fuel poverty. The Committee has now called on the Government to define its plans in the strategy beyond this winter to reassure people that support will be available.
The Government’s proposals outline that some households are more likely to experience fuel poverty. While the Committee was happy to see this acknowledged, they want to see what more could be done to help disabled children or adults.
The Committee also raised concerns that the strategy did not fully plan to tackle the depth of fuel poverty in rural, remote and island areas. Some of these areas have recently faced significant challenges in accessing energy caused by winter storms. The Committee called for more detail on how the Government will engage with people living in these communities, who face a disproportionate risk of extreme fuel poverty.
Neil Gray MSP, Convener of the Social Justice and Social Security Committee, said:“The significant recent disruption to energy supplies has brought the issue of equality in access to energy into sharp focus.
“We are pleased that the Scottish Government has made a commitment to address fuel poverty with this strategy. However, we believe the proposals should go further to protect the most vulnerable in our society.
“Sadly, given current indications that high inflation looks set to last well into the Spring, we are extremely worried that more people may be dragged into fuel poverty through no fault of their own. This makes it more important that the Government’s strategy details long term commitments.
“Thank you to everyone who shared their lived experience of fuel poverty with our Committee. The compelling and often upsetting evidence we heard has reinforced our belief that people’s experiences should be reflected in the strategy’s design and implementation.”
The full text of the Committee’s letter can be read here:
