Seòmar agus comataidhean

"Electronic Monitoring in Scotland – A Consultation on Proposals for Legislation" is a public consultation and the Scottish Government is keen to hear from all those with an interest in this area.

We are particularly interested in the thoughts of a range of people and organisations working in the justice system, people who have been victims of crime and those with a history of offending.

The Scottish Government is consulting on legislative proposals for Electronic Monitoring until 19 May 2017.

Alongside this consultation we will be developing the potential costs associated with the introduction of GPS and alcohol monitoring technologies. These potential costs will be reflected in the financial memorandum of any Bill that we introduce.

The Scottish Government has accepted all the recommendations of the Child Protection Systems Review, including the recommendation to establish a National Child Protection Leadership Group. As I stated in my answer to the member in the chamber, given the expectations that I am setting out for others to show leadership in this area I decided that I should demonstrate my own commitment to leadership by chairing the Leadership Group.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring electronic monitoring is tailored to reflect the needs, risks and circumstances of the individual. The expansion of electronic monitoring, including use of GPS, will increase the options available to manage and monitor those who offend in the community and to further protect public safety.

GPS technology to monitor those who offend is used in a number of other jurisdictions. The introduction of GPS will depend on the outcome of the consultation and any subsequent parliamentary process.

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-007710 on 16 March 2017. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-07232 on 15 March 2017. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-07778 on 15 March 2017. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx

I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows:

With the information the Scottish Prison Service has readily available, we have no record of this taking place. This information is not held on our electronic Prisoner Records System.

I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows:

Young people remanded to SPS custody can legally be held in either a prison or Young Offenders Institution (YOI). In recent years SPS has taken the policy decision to locate all young people on remand in a YOI rather than Prison. There may be occasions when SPS will locate a young person in a prison, for a temporary purpose, such as for during court proceedings, where daily travel arrangements to and from a YOI would be challenging or exhausting.

The change in SPS Policy recognised the vulnerability and significant care requirements of young people remanded to our care, in particular those aged 17 and 18. SPS believes that their needs in terms of regime and accommodation can be better met in a YOI.

I have asked Colin McConnell, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service, to respond. His response is as follows:

This information is not readily available on our electronic Prisoner Records System and requires significant resource time to extract this data. Given the quantity of prisoner movements involved in this enquiry, this response covers the 5 year period 2013 to 2017 in the following table.