This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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National Criminal Justice Board
19/03/2003
A National Criminal Justice System Board, made up of the
chief officers of the main criminal justice agencies, will
be established in Scotland following an extensive review of
the aims, objectives and targets of the criminal justice
system.
Ministers also announced that for the first time
ever, targets will be implemented across the whole criminal
justice system that will enable the performance of the
whole system to be monitored.
Welcoming the publication of the "
Criminal Justice Objectives Review", by the Crown
Agent, Andrew Normand, Justice Minister Jim Wallace and the
Lord Advocate, Colin Boyd said this would lead to a more
co-ordinated system of criminal justice in Scotland.
Mr Wallace said:
"This is an important report and its recommendations
will allow a more coherent approach in the Scottish
Criminal Justice system.
"We propose to set up a national Criminal Justice
System Board, consisting of the chief officers of the main
criminal justice agencies.
"The remit of the Board will be to make
recommendations on the overall aims, objectives and targets
for the Criminal Justice System and to monitor the
performance of the system as a whole. To enable the Board
to carry out its remit, members will be invited to share
information and to consider how information on the
performance of the system as a whole should be presented
and measured.
"As the report shows, local co-ordination and liaison
are of fundamental importance and we will implement
arrangements to bring together criminal justice agencies
into closer working relationships at local level. We will
be discussing further with Sheriffs Principal the role they
will play in convening such arrangements bearing in mind
the limits of their statutory responsibility to secure the
speedy and efficient disposal of business in the sheriff
courts of their sheriffdom.
"We have discussed with the judiciary their possible
involvement in these arrangements to be sure that nothing
the Executive does risks compromising their independence.
The Convenor of the Sheriffs Principal has agreed to attend
the national Board and a High Court judge will attend the
national CJS Board when issues that would benefit from
judicial input at that level arise.
"As a result of these arrangements for the first time
ever, targets will be implemented across the whole CJS that
will enable the performance of the whole system to be
monitored.
"At present there are no overall targets for the
system, but each operational agency, such as the 8 police
forces, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, and
the Scottish Court Service, has its own separate
arrangements."
Welcoming the report Mr Boyd said:
"We are anxious to ensure that closer local working
relationships are based on practical projects with
achievable results. To this end, we plan to set up one or
more funded pilot projects to illustrate how a joined up
approach could be implemented at local level. The pilots
will be in the area of the summary criminal business of the
sheriff courts, with particular reference to eliminating
avoidable delay.
"We are already committed, under Action Point 10 of
our youth crime action plan, to considering measures to
increase the speed of referral to the courts, and the
introduction of specific targets discussed with the
Judiciary. The pilots will be overseen by the national CJS
Board.
"This report complements the work by Lord Bonomy on
improving the efficiency of the High Court, and the work
being undertaken by Sheriff Principal McInnes's Committee
on summary justice. Together these 3 reviews will pave the
way for the most radical improvements in our criminal
justice system for over 20 years."
The consultation period will run until the end of
June 2003.