THE Scottish Government’s Victim Notification Scheme has been branded a failure after a loophole saw people “left in the dark about the fate of criminals who have made their lives a misery.”
Under the scheme, which is open to all victims of crime where the perpetrator was sentenced to 18 months or more, a person is entitled to know, within 48 hours, the date of the offender’s release, or if they die, or if they are eligible for temporary release.
However, in 17 cases where a person was released from prison on compassionate grounds, the victim was not notified.
This included three prisoners convicted of murder, with another convicted of culpable homicide, and one convicted of possessing an indecent photograph of a child.
Scottish Tory justice spokesman Jamie Greene said it was “crucial victims of crime receive all the information they want.”
He said: “It is absolutely shocking that not a single victim of serious crime was notified about the criminal in their case being released.
“It is crucial victims of crime receive all the information they want, but the SNP’s failure to prioritise their rights has meant that victims have been left waiting for answers.
“This shocking admission is yet another example of victims being left in the dark about the fate of criminals who have made their lives a misery.
“The SNP have repeatedly failed to promote their flagship Victim Notification Scheme to the point where only a quarter of victims have signed up to it.
“The SNP Government cannot continue to kick this issue into the long grass. They must urgently back my plans for a Victims Law so we can guarantee victims will always be at the heart of Scotland’s justice system.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring victims’ rights are at the heart of the justice system and continues to take forward measures to improve this.
“The Victim Notification Scheme enables victims and their families to receive certain information about the release of a prisoner. Victims are able to make informed decisions about whether or not to sign up for the scheme.
“In April this year, the Scottish Government commenced an independent review of the Victim Notification Scheme, chaired by Alastair MacDonald, former Chair of Victim Support Scotland.
"The review is examining the scheme to ensure it is fit for purpose and serving victims effectively.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel