Concern over impact of new early prisoner release bill as Scotland’s crime stats revealed

Victim Support Scotland has expressed concerns about the impact of the Prisoners (Early Release) (Scotland) Bill, which was passed by MSPs yesterday, in light of new crime statistics revealed by the Scottish Government this week. 
The report details that incidents of crimes including rape, domestic abuse and non-sexual crimes of violence have all increased since 2020, some by as much as 20%.

Victim Support Scotland had called for five key amendments to legislation which would have provided better safeguards for victims of crime and the wider public. These were:

1. Removal of secondary legislation relating to long term prisoners
2. Inclusion of express duty for information sharing with victims/victim support organisations
3. Inclusion of Governor’s veto
4. Addition of an amendment to create a new ‘presumed unsuitable for release on HDC’ category which includes sexual offences, domestic abuse, stalking, harassment, coercive control and non-fatal strangulation and suffocation offences.
5. Monitoring, evaluation, and post-legislative scrutiny
 
Kate Wallace, Chief Executive of Victim Support Scotland, commented: 

“We are extremely disappointed and concerned that the bill was passed with no amendments to better protect victims of crime and safeguard the wider public.

“Ministers say they are aware that victims will have concerns, but this concern is not reflected in the rushed manner in which this legislation has been passed. The speed at which the Bill was introduced and then passed has not allowed for sufficient debate, scrutiny and time to formulate workable amendments.

“Recent history is going to repeat itself, with devastating consequences. Every prisoner released early represents a threat to the safety of victims and the wider public.

“The new statistics on recorded crime in Scotland make these measures even more worrying – incidents of violent crimes like rape, domestic abuse and non-sexual crimes of violence have all increased since 2020, some by as much as 20%.

“It’s crucial to remember that every one of these incidents of recorded violent crime represents a devastating impact on someone’s life. And it is some of the most serious crimes, like rape, that have seen the most significant increases – each percentage means a victim has been created and a life changed forever.

“We are particularly worried that much-needed improvements to the Victim Notification Scheme will not be in place by the time the first tranche of prisoners is released – during the last early release scheme, only 2% of victims were notified, which is clearly not good enough.

“Legislation like this erodes confidence in the justice system. Victims are very clear with us that they want to be confident that the justice system protects them and prevents others from going through what they have experienced.

“VSS will continue to provide dedicated support to people impacted by crime and encourage anybody who has been affected to contact us for free, confidential support.”