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The Scottish Executive: Draft Budget 2004-05 Summary

Chapter 1 Justice

To create a safer and fairer Scotland.

OBJECTIVES AND TARGETS

Objective 1: To make Scotland a place where people are safer, and feel safer.

• Target 1: Further reduction in serious violent crime. The Scottish Police Service agreed a target in March 2002 to reduce serious violent crime by 5% by 2004. A new target involving a further reduction will be agreed for 2006.
• Target 2: Increase seizures of Class A drugs. The Scottish Police Service already has a target to increase such seizures by 25% by 2004. A new target will be agreed for 2006.
• Target 3: Reduce fear of crime, or seriousness of worry about crime. Measures will be contained in the next Scottish Crime Survey due in 2004.

Objective 2: To have a fair and more efficient justice system that commands the confidence of its customers and the public.

• Target 4: 85% of summary cases completed in 20 weeks of first calling in the Sheriff Court by 2005-06.
• Target 5: Increase the percentage of those victims who want support having been offered or successfully sought that support by 12% by 2006.

Objective 3: To reduce offending and provide more and more effective non-custodial penalties.

• Target 6: Provide 6,300 prisoner places by 2005-06.
• Target 7: Increase the number of prison rehabilitation programmes and approved activities by 40% to 1,500 by 2005-06.
• Target 8: Provide capacity for 17,000 community disposals by 2005-06, focusing on priority groups such as women, young people and drug users.
• Target 9: Accreditation Panel in place by 2003 to improve quality of community programmes with at least three offending programmes developed for accreditation by 2004-05.

Objective 4: To make Scotland fairer through a modern, efficient and user-friendly/accessible civil justice system.

• Target 10: Increasing the number of people getting access to justice through legal aid and other means by 5% (20,000) over the Spending Review period.
• Target 11: To make a statutory debt arrangement scheme accessible to everyone burdened by multiple debt who is eligible to participate by the end of 2005-06.

Table 1.01 Spending plans (level 2)

Notes
1. Includes provision of 3.5/4.25/5.25 million for youth crime.
2. The figures reflect the move to record Scottish Executive NDPBs on a resource basis. Included within the legal aid baseline is 7.04 million from 2003-04 onwards to cover this change.
3. Police grant, which forms part of the Justice budget, is derived from Police GAE - which is accounted for in the Local Government Spending Plans table.
4. Programmes form part of the Justice portfolio, but are accounted for in the Local Government Spending Plans table.

What the budget does

The Justice Department has responsibility for police, fire, criminal justice social work services, criminal justice policy, civil law matters and administrative support to the Supreme and Sheriff Courts. The Scottish Prison Service, Scottish Court Service and the Accountant in Bankruptcy are Executive agencies of the department.

The Justice programme provides resources for the criminal justice agencies and for the operation of the civil justice system.

It supports over 20,000 police officers and support staff through specific grant to police authorities, and over the period will provide for growth in these areas to new record levels.

It provides for the Scottish Prison Service to keep in custody those offenders committed by the courts, in establishments where 82% of the population have access to night sanitation (up from 70% in 1997-98).

Provision is made for increasing the range of community disposals available to the courts, including some aimed at tackling drug-related crime, and for new services for victims and witnesses.

The programme includes spending on the Sheriff and Supreme courts and has provided the funding necessary to set up the new Public Guardian's Office.

Other major elements of the spending include legal aid, which paid for almost 400,000 people to get legal help in one form or another, and criminal injuries compensation for the blameless victims of violent crime.

Portfolio priorities

In 2004-05 we will focus our resources on:

Tackling crime and targeting the causes of crime

• increasing the number of police officers on operational duty in every Scottish force and improving on the current level of overall police numbers;
• supporting Chief Constables to meet their target of an increase of 500 in the number of special constables;
• continuing to expand the Scottish Drugs Enforcement Agency;
• reviewing devolved licensing powers to shut down drug dealing premises in Scotland and ensure that premises are not re-occupied by new dealers;
• working with the Home Office on reserved matters relating to drug dealing premises;
• improving the efficiency of police forces by providing more common support services, while enhancing community accountability for policing through local police boards;
• taking forward the White Paper on the Fire Service by introducing a Fire Services Bill to modernise the service, meet local needs, increase local decision making and improve consultation with the workforce;
• reviewing the law on knife crimes and its enforcement;
• expanding CCTV in shopping and other areas - supporting businesses and others to reduce crime;
• rolling out youth courts where they are needed, subject to successful evaluation as necessary;
• consulting on a national system of warnings for young offenders, with a restorative element where appropriate;

Reducing re-offending

• using the model of drug courts across Scotland, where they are needed;
• continuing to improve the range and quality of the sentences available to courts;
• setting up a judicially led sentencing commission to review sentencing;
• publishing proposals for consultation for a single agency to deliver custodial and non-custodial sentences in Scotland with the aim of reducing reoffending rates;

Reforming the courts and legal system

• legislating to protect vulnerable witnesses such as children and to improve the support for victims and witnesses with increased privacy protection, including witnesses in anti-social behaviour cases;
• boosting victim support and court support schemes and expanding the witness service to the High Court;
• preparing to set up an independent police complaints body;
• legislating to reform the operation of the High Court;
• taking forward the review of summary justice;
• operating the reformed judicial appointments system which will be put on a statutory basis, ensuring that QCs are appointed in a more open and independent way;
• working towards establishing a Scottish human rights commission;

Modernising the law for a modern society

• modernising the laws on personal bankruptcy and diligence to strike a better balance between supporting business risk and protecting the right of creditors; and
• modernising family law for all Scotland's people.

New resources

The spending plans are based on the plans published in 'Building a Better Scotland' last year. Since then, however, an additional 0.5/13.5/25 million has been allocated to the justice budget. This additional money, together with a moderate reallocation between budget lines, will enable the Executive to meet the commitments in the Partnership Agreement.

Closing the opportunity gap

The Justice portfolio plays a crucial part in addressing this priority by working to reduce crime - particularly violent and drug-related crime and housebreaking, which disproportionately affect disadvantaged areas.

Sustainable development

The justice system contributes directly to sustainable development through the enforcement of environmental law. In addition, a number of our spending commitments assist with sustainable communities (principally through the reduction in crime) and several to providing services electronically. It should also provide for more accessible services to those in rural areas. Capital investment in prisons and court buildings realises energy efficiency improvements. In addition, individual police forces are taking forward a range of initiatives which are contributing to improved sustainability.

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