Scottish Consultation Begins On 'Radical Overhaul' Of Criminal Justice

A consultation on plans to overhaul Scotland's system for the investigation and prosecution of crime, including the removal of the requirement for corroboration and reform of arrest and detention, has been published today by Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill.

The Scottish Government has signalled its intention to accept the broad reasoning of Lord Carloway's recent review into Scots law and practice as a package, and today's consultation seeks views on the many "far-reaching" proposals set out in the report, ahead of bringing forward legislation at an early opportunity.

Key recommendations in the Carloway Report, which was published in November and followed the UK Supreme Court's Cadder ruling, included:

* The right to legal advice when taken into custody

* Limit the period of arrest before charge to 12 hours

* Particular protection and rights for children and vulnerable adults

* Greater flexibility for police in conducting investigations whilst ensuring fairness for suspects

* Less restrictive rules around evidence and a removal of the need for corroboration

* Adjustments to the relationship between the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission (SCCRC) and the High Court

Launching the three month consultation, Mr MacAskill said: "As much as the UK Supreme Court's Cadder decision caused upheaval - to which we reacted quickly - it also provided the opportunity to re-evaluate our criminal justice system in more detail. The review carried out last year by Lord Carloway is not only weighty and authoritative, but far-reaching and radical.

"Lord Carloway's report provides a clear and coherent package of reforms to modernise the Scottish Criminal Justice System which I believe will resonate well into the future in the same way as the Thomson Committee's work of the 1970s still resonates today. Some of his proposals, such as the removal of the requirement for corroboration, are monumental and will overhaul many years of legal practice.

"Many of the Carloway recommendations, particularly around access to a lawyer, arrest and appeals, have already met with broad agreement in principle, though the consultation asks key questions around points of detail.

"On corroboration, the consultation paper agrees that the requirement should be abolished. It reflects that the rationale for the rule stems from another age, that its usage has become confused and that it can bar prosecutions that would in any other legal system seem entirely appropriate. The focus of our consultation is on deciding how to best achieve abolition and what, if any, additional measures require to be taken as a consequence."

(GK)