Official Report, Solicitors in the Supreme Courts of Scotland (Amendment) Any Time Soon

Meeting of the Parliament (Hybrid) Wednesday 19 August 2020 Session 5 © Parliamentary copyright. Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body Information on the Scottish Parliament’s copyright policy can be found on the website - www.parliament.scot or by contacting Public Information on 0131 348 5000 Wednesday 19 August 2020 CONTENTS Col. SOLICITORS IN THE SUPREME COURTS OF SCOTLAND (AMENDMENT) BILL: PRELIMINARY STAGE ......................... 1 Motion moved—[Christine Grahame]. Christine Grahame (Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale) (SNP) ................................................ 1 John Mason (Glasgow Shettleston) (SNP) ................................................................................................... 3 Daniel Johnson (Edinburgh Southern) (Lab) ................................................................................................ 5 Bill Bowman (North East Scotland) (Con) .................................................................................................... 7 HEALTH ........................................................................................................................................................... 10 Statement—[Jeane Freeman]. The Cabinet Secretary for Health and Sport (Jeane Freeman) ................................................................. 10 SCOTLAND’S REDRESS SCHEME FOR SURVIVORS OF HISTORICAL CHILD ABUSE IN CARE .................................. 31 Statement—[John Swinney]. The Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills (John Swinney) ...................... 31 SCOTTISH PARLIAMENTARY CORPORATE BODY ................................................................................................ 43 BUSINESS MOTIONS ......................................................................................................................................... 46 Motions moved—[Graeme Dey]—and agreed to. DECISION TIME ................................................................................................................................................ 48 1 19 AUGUST 2020 2 whether it should proceed as a private bill. In Scottish Parliament considering whether the bill should proceed as a private bill, the committee assessed whether it Wednesday 19 August 2020 conforms to the definition of a private bill, and whether the accompanying documents are [The Deputy Presiding Officer opened the adequate to allow proper scrutiny of the bill. meeting at 14:30] If the Parliament agrees to the motion on the bill at the preliminary stage, it will move to the Solicitors in the Supreme Courts consideration stage, during which amendments of Scotland (Amendment) Bill: will be considered. Thereafter, the bill will proceed Preliminary Stage to the final stage, for consideration of any further amendments and a decision on whether it should be passed. The Deputy Presiding Officer (Linda Fabiani): I remind members that social distancing In order to understand the current position in measures are in place in the chamber and which the SSC Society finds itself, it is helpful to throughout the Holyrood campus. I ask members understand its history and the history of the legal to take care to observe the measures over the profession in Scotland. The Society of Solicitors in course of this afternoon’s business, in particular the Supreme Courts of Scotland has been in when entering and exiting the chamber. existence for more than 200 years—longer even than me. It was formed in 1784, with a contract The first item of business is a preliminary stage and articles of association and regulation. A royal debate on motion S5M-22407, in the name of charter was granted to it in 1797, which made the Christine Grahame, on the Solicitors in the society a body corporate. In 1817, a widows fund Supreme Courts of Scotland (Amendment) Bill. was established, to pay annuities to surviving Members who wish to speak in the debate widows and orphans of the society’s members. should press their request-to-speak buttons. I call The Solicitors in the Supreme Courts of Christine Grahame to speak for up to eight Scotland Act 1871 confirmed and amended the minutes, and to move the motion. charter, and re-incorporated the society. However, one omission from that act was powers for the 14:31 society to wind itself up—which was either Christine Grahame (Midlothian South, because the then members did not foresee a day Tweeddale and Lauderdale) (SNP): I am pleased when the society might not exist, or because they to open the preliminary stage debate on the deliberately did not include powers that would Solicitors in the Supreme Courts of Scotland allow the society to close down. (Amendment) Bill. I thank my colleagues on the The Law Society of Scotland was established in Solicitors in the Supreme Courts of Scotland 1949, and it took over the business of regulating (Amendment) Bill Committee—deputy convener the legal profession. In 1979, elements of the 1871 Bill Bowman, Daniel Johnson and John Mason— act were amended to reflect the changes that had for their work in getting the bill to this stage. occurred over the previous century. The bill was introduced on 26 September 2019, The benefits of membership currently include and is being promoted by the Society of Solicitors access to the SSC Society’s building at Parliament in the Supreme Courts of Scotland—known as the house in Edinburgh, use of a legal library and SSC Society. It is the fifth private bill to be members’ lounge, and membership of the widows introduced in the current session; the previous four fund. all received royal assent. The society has about 220 members spread The private bill process is quite different. The throughout Scotland, and there are 46 first stage of the process differs from that for public beneficiaries of the widows fund, each of whom bills—with which we are more familiar—in that it receives an annuity of £3,000. The society is run begins with a 60-day objection period. During by five office bearers and a council of six those 60 days, any person or organisation who members. Over recent years, demographic believes that their private interests would be changes in the membership have meant that the adversely affected by the bill can lodge an society now finds itself with a predominantly older objection. The objection period for the bill and retired membership, with fewer younger concluded on 25 November 2019, and no members joining. Apparently, that is not unusual in objections were lodged. such societies, nowadays. There is therefore a At the preliminary stage, the role of the bill concern that a dwindling number of members committee is twofold: first, to consider the general might one day find themselves in the position in principles of the bill and, secondly, to consider which the society or the widows fund, or both, 3 19 AUGUST 2020 4 needs to be wound up, but with no powers so to around the society’s headquarters at Parliament do. Square, just up the road. Bill Bowman, the clerks and I saw the building where the society is The bill seeks to update and modernise the located, which is in close proximity to the Court of society’s statutory constitution—that is, the 1871 Session, the Faculty of Advocates, the WS Society act—by updating the act for modern conditions, and the High Court. It was interesting to hear and by giving the society additional powers that it Robert Shiels, the society’s secretary, note that might need in the future. The purposes of the bill many of the early members of the society had include renaming the widows fund as the entered the legal profession through dependents fund, and providing the society with apprenticeships, rather than with law degrees. The powers either to close the fund to new members or visit was therefore helpful in providing background to close it completely; giving the society powers to and context to the bill. wind itself up in the future; creating new types of membership and making new provision to allow I intend to concentrate on the mechanisms that members of the society to resign; and abolishing are required to wind up the society, and on certain the offices of librarian and fiscal. aspects of the society’s meetings. As the convener mentioned, one of the main aims of the bill is to Part of the committee’s role was to assess address the lack of powers in the 1871 act to wind whether the bill will achieve those objectives. In up the society. It is understandable that office order to aid its scrutiny, on 17 December 2019 the bearers do not wish to find themselves, as one committee held an evidence session with the office bearer put it, society’s office bearers and its drafting adviser. As a committee, we asked the promoter what “aged 85 and the only official ... left at the table”, alternative approaches had been considered and and able only to what the implications would be if the bill were not passed. The promoter emphasised that they are “resign from office, walk away and leave an organisation not expecting to wind up the fund or the society that still exists with nobody to manage it.”—[Official Report, Solicitors in the Supreme Courts of Scotland (Amendment) any time soon. However, they wish to have the Bill Committee, 17 December 2019; c 10.] mechanisms in place in case they are needed in the future, so that winding-up can be done in an The bill will therefore insert in the 1871 act orderly fashion, without requiring an urgent action proposed new section 52B, which sets out the before the Court of Session. general process for decisions on winding

Load more