Volume 15 Issue 1
Parliament in View
CATHOLIC PARLIAMENTARY OFFICE
13 October 2013
Tackling Trade in Misery Scottish Labour MSP Jenny Marra has lodged a consultation on a proposal for new antihuman trafficking legislation which aims to be the ‘gold standard’ in combatting the evil. Six years ago, in 2007, we celebrated 200 years since the abolition of the Atlantic slave trade. However experts believe there are now more people enslaved than in 1807 because of the practise of human trafficking. It is estimated that between 600,000 and 800,000 people are trafficked annually across international boundaries. In London, Glasgow, Cardiff, Dundee, trafficked people, bought, sold, coerced against their will, are working in prostitution, domestic servitude and forced labour. Of them, 70 per cent are women. The bill would introduce a number of measures to help the victims of trafficking and to punish those who traffic in humans. If the proposal became law it would become illegal to punish any victim of human trafficking for a crime that they were forced to commit as a result of their plight. It would also introduce for the first time a criminal offence of human trafficking, into Scots law, and would create a further offence of 'aiding, abetting or attempting to commit human trafficking'.
The proposed legislation will define the crime of human trafficking by enshrining the international gold standard definition, the UN’s ‘Palermo Protocol’ into law. Other key measures include the establishment of a 'survivors' service' to help victims, and the introduction of a mandatory requirement for the Scottish Government to publish an anti-trafficking strategy, which Parliament would have to review and agree on every three years. Blessed Pope John Paul II described the appalling nature of modern trafficking in 2002 at the Human Rights Dimension to Trafficking in Human Beings Conference: “The trade in human persons constitutes a shocking offense against human dignity and a grave violation of fundamental human rights. Such situations are an affront to fundamental values which are shared by all cultures and peoples, values rooted in the very nature of the human person.” Individuals and Churches are invited to respond to this consultation by answering the questions in the document and by adding any other comments they deem relevant. The consultation document can be found at: www.scottish.parliament.uk/ parliamentarybusiness/Bills/67134.aspx
Committee Considers Marriage A range of organisations and individuals have been giving evidence to the Equal Opportunities Committee on the meaning of marriage. The committee is presently completing stage 1 of the Marriage and Civil Partnership (Scotland) Bill which aims to redefine marriage to make the gender of spouses irrelevant. Stage 1 involves considering the principles of the bill and many witnesses have challenged the very principle of redefining marriage. The Catholic Parliamentary Office and Scottish Catholic Education Service have appeared before the committee and been supported in defending marriage by groups including the Muslim Council of Scotland, the Family Education Trust and Scotland for Marriage. Campaigners for same-sex marriage have relied on claims that recognising marriage as uniquely a relationship between a man and woman is a form of discrimination and have likened it with racism. They have argued also that redefining marriage is necessary to tackle ‘homophobia’. The term is now broadly defined and opposition to same -sex marriage itself is now taken as a form of ‘homophobia’. Elaine Smith MSP took the step of submitting her own evidence to the committee raising her concerns about the intolerance around this issue towards those who wish to defend traditional marriage. The Coatbridge MSP has been the focus of email attacks vilifying her as a bigot and homophobe
for stating her views. Her call for reason in this debate may hopefully encourage other politicians to consider the actual merits of redefining marriage. The issue has become a proxy debate for what Professor John Curtice, the polling expert during his evidence before the committee, described as a cultural revolution over the last decade or so. The damage of family breakdown to society and to children is enormous but campaigners for same-sex marriage do not see any link with their campaign and family breakdown. In fact they argue that it is a way of encouraging family stability. At a time when much of politics relies on soundbites it will always be difficult to convince people of the need for recognising the natural form of the family. The neglect of the family by the state takes a generation and more before the consequences are fully realised. The change in law which will be so dramatic will be that public authorities, because of the Public Sector Equality Duty, will be bound to promote the new form of marriage as equivalent to the relationship built on the union between a man and woman. This leads to a loss of understanding of motherhood and fatherhood which are so important for the wellbeing of children. The Committee will report some time before a stage 1 debate likely to be in December. Video coverage of the evidence session including the Catholic Parliamentary Office can be viewed at http://www.bbc.co.uk/ democracylive/scotland-23970411
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Parliamentary Business Ahead On Tuesday 3rd of September the Scottish Parliament began its debate on the 20132014 legislative programme of The Scottish Government. From the outset, with the opening statement by The First Minister, it developed into a discussion on the merits and disadvantages of Independence (separation) for Scotland. This was unfortunate because there are many other areas in the government’s programme which would have benefited from further urgent scrutiny. Yes there is a Scottish Independence Referendum Bill but that was introduced last year and while it could definitely be argued that Independence is a topical issue this makes it even stranger that in his 4,261 word statement Alex Salmond failed to make a single reference to his Marriage and Civil Partnership Bill. In the government’s 2013-2014 programme there are 13 bills concerning issues of: housing, mental health, food standards, licensing and court reforms. It was surely too sweeping a statement when Labour Leader Johann Lamont said “there is nothing progressive” in the programme but it is not unfair to say that last year’s programme, which is now in the process of being enacted into law, holds far more interest and likely difficulty. St. Paul in his second letter to the Corinthians writes ‘In the mouth of two or
three witnesses shall every word be established’ (2Cor13,1). However our centuries-old requirement for corroboration in criminal court cases is soon to be abolished despite widespread concern among the legal profession. It seems a worrying expansion of the powers of the state that every child from birth to the
age of 18 is to have a ‘named person’, on behalf of the state, responsible for their wellbeing. While well-intentioned, it seriously risks blurring the rights and responsibilities of parents towards their own children. The Government is also determined, against the results of their own consultation process, to press ahead with its desire to change the meaning and purpose of marriage and thus contradict the will of God. Despite assurances to the contrary many workers in the public sector will be left with the fear of prosecution for being faithful to their conscience. This does not reflect well on the
claims of Scotland to being a modern, tolerant, progressive society as both Unionists and Nationalists would have it. Other key bills we can look forward to include: The Budget Bill is an annual bill which provides Scottish Parliamentary approval for the Scottish Government’s spending plans. The Scottish Welfare Fund Bill is to put on a statutory footing the fund previously set up to “mitigate” welfare reform. It will establish the fund as discretionary local welfare assistance and describe how the fund will be delivered. The Community Empowerment and Renewal Bill seeks to make it easier for communities to take over public sector assets that are not used and to help communities deal more effectively with vacant and derelict property in their areas. The Housing Bill will end all right-to-buy entitlements for social housing tenants. The bill also seeks to protect consumers by creating a new Housing Tribunal to ensure effective and prompt resolution of disputes in the private rented sector. The Mental Health Bill is to ensure that people with a mental health disorder can access effective treatment quickly and easily. For more details and a summary of all 13 new bills go to www.bbc.co.uk/news/ uk-scotland-23951293
Transitioning to the New Democratic Politics The European Citizens’ Initiative has been previously mentioned in our newsletter. It is an attempt to improve democracy in the European Union structures. It is a welcome new feature of the EU and especially heartening that “One of Us” has been among the first initiatives to gather the one million signatures necessary for consideration by the European Commission. You can still lend your weight to this attempt to end EU funding of human embryo research by visiting www.oneofus.eu The importance of democracy is perhaps most acutely appreciated by those who don’t have it. Thus movements around the world agitate for the right to participate in the running of their countries. Democracy lends itself to the new model of political power based on dialogue and consensus. As globalisation unfolds it offers a new political culture based on human rights and inclusiveness. This offers to supersede the age of ideologies when ideas of how to live and how to run society were imposed on the populace from power structures above. Genuine democracy needs widespread participation to work effectively otherwise dialogue and consensus will only emerge from small interest groups rather than all of society. Professor Marguerite Peeters has identified the phenomenon of ‘top-down Page 2
globalisation’ where organised lobby groups can take on the appearance of bottom-up participation but in fact are vestiges of the old ideological politics imposed by elites on the rest. She notes how they advance ideological notions by stealth through the use of vague language. A democratic system with poor levels of participation can result in poorly thought out laws and policies. In coming with a set of demands to the table of democracy it is seen as a democratic compromise to give half or at least some part of the demand. This then leaves the opportunity for a subsequent approach to get another tranche of the original proposals. Thus incremental change can happen very quickly as we have seen with the demise of the family in the UK and similar collapse in respect for human life at all stages. Proponents of change often come armed with opinion polls to justify their demands to political leaders. These are much more easy to cultivate in the right direction by those with powerful access to media. In contrast genuine grassroots engagement is much more likely to establish wise choices and genuine discussion on issues doesn’t lend itself to superficial manipulation. The solution has to be in encouraging wide, authentic discussion on the common good of society. A sign of hope is that the new
director of the BBC has re-affirmed the principles on which the BBC was established—to inform, educate and entertain. Too much of our culture is focused only the latter of these. We are not immune from ‘bread and circuses’ which identified the same phenomenon in ancient Rome. It is to be welcomed that the balance towards informing and educating is to be reconfigured at least in one significant shaper of public attitudes which the BBC undoubtedly is. In addition it will require the efforts of many more to commit themselves to furthering the common good. Our office is eager to hear of ways in which we can help further that endeavour. The year of faith has been a time of concentrating on what the Church teaches with a view to passing it on throughout society. The next year towards the referendum on independence offers a useful time of reflection on the values that we wish to uphold in Scotland whatever the constitutional arrangement may be. There are a variety of groups working on ways to facilitate reflection ahead of the referendum. The Justice and Peace Commission of St Andrews and Edinburgh is preparing materials for workshops in parishes and will be offering training for facilitators early in the new year. Please contact our office if you wish further information. PARLIAMENT IN VIEW
Current Legislation Bankruptcy and Debt Advice (Scotland) Bill (G) Stage 1 (evidence, lead committee (Economy, Energy and Tourism)) 9 October Burrell Collection (Lending and Borrowing) (Scotland) Bill (P) Preliminary Stage 3 October Children and Young People (Scotland) Bill (G) Stage 1 (evidence, lead committee (Education and Culture)) 8 October City of Edinburgh Council (Leith Links and Surplus Fire Fund) Bill (P) Introduced 5 September City of Edinburgh Council (Portobello Park) Bill (P) Preliminary Stage 9 October Criminal Justice (Scotland) Bill (G) Stage 1 (evidence, lead committee, (Justice)) 8 October Landfill Tax (Scotland) Bill (G) Stage 1 (lead committee (Finance)) 4 September Marriage and Civil Partnership (Scotland) Bill (G) Stage 1 (evidence, lead committee (Equal Opportunities)) 3 October Procurement Reform (Scotland) Bill (G) Stage 1 9 October Public Bodies (Joint Working) (Scotland) Bill (G) Stage 1 (evidence, (Health and Sport)) 1 October Regulatory Reform (Scotland) Bill (G) Stage 1 published 8 October Scottish Independence Referendum Bill (G) Stage 2 completed 10 October Tribunals (Scotland) Bill (G) Stage 1 (lead committee (Justice)) 8 October Victims and Witnesses (Scotland) Bill (G) Stage 1 completed 19 June (G) – Government Bill; (M) – Member’s Bill; (C) = Committee Bill; (P) = Private Bill; (H) – Hybrid Bill
Prisons and Prisoners Crime and punishment are perennial concerns of society. Prisons and prisoners are ever a hot political topic. There is a spate of issues on the go just now. ‘Private prisons’ was addressed during party conference season; the automatic early release of prisoners has been ended; electronic tagging of prisoners is being consulted upon, as is the effectiveness of rehabilitation in a separate consultation paper. The Justice Committee has also just called for evidence in regard to Prison Visiting Committees. The perspective people take on the role of the state influences their views on many of these issues. The Church offers useful principles to help assess the strengths and weaknesses of various policy positions but largely leaves those policy positions to the expertise of those involved in such assessments. Pope Francis almost immediately after his election led by example in raising the underpinning principle
that the Church proposes in dealing with prisoners. He chose to wash and kiss the feet of prisoners at a Roman prison on Holy Thursday reminding us of the dignity of every human person.
The Church of course upholds the need for justice and the right of the state to defend society which sometimes needs the incarceration or restriction of freedom of those who are a threat to others.
Social conditions contribute considerably to the outcome of many people who find themselves in prison. The prevalence of drugs and alcohol abuse are large factors. It is chastening to note that 45% of children in young offenders institutions have grown up in care. The consultation on rehabilitation considers the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 with a view to modernising the legislation as required. This is a major assessment of principles and concepts underpinning prosecution, prison sentencing and rehabilitation. The government wishes to hear from those with an interest in the area and the ‘discussion paper’ can be responded to until 19th November 2012. The government will assess what future steps are required, if any, in light of evidence submitted.
News in Brief Building Compassionate Communities is a key feature of the work of faith groups recently commended by Cabinet Secretary for Health, Alex Neil in the report ‘In Good Faith’ produced earlier this year by the Health and Social Care Alliance. The report gives an account of some of that work. The organisation can be found at www.alliance-scotland.org.uk ********* Review of school guidance for delivery of relationship and sex education is underway by the Scottish government. Stakeholders have been approached to respond to draft guidance which will take in to consideration developments in law relating to marriage. ********* A review of Civil Partnership legislation has been launched to examine the operation of the legislation and to consider the anomaly that it provides a recognition for same-sex relationships but not heterosexual ones. See http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Resource/0043/00434010.pdf ********* Government minister Roseanna Cunningham has announced funding of £2 million for groups combatting sectarianism. The findings of the group headed by Duncan Morrow and set up by the Minister to examine sectarianism in Scotland is expected to be published in the near future. ********* Scottish Parliamentarians gave their support to mental health week and world Mental Health day which was marked on 10th October. Useful information on the issue is available from the Scottish Association for Mental Health www.samh.org.uk ********* Siobhan McMahon has tabled a motion in the Scottish Parliament welcoming Archbishop Leo Cushley’s appointment as Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh Archdiocese noting his extensive experience in the diplomatic service of the Holy See and wishing him well in his new role. VOLUME 15 ISSUE 1
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C ATH O LI C P AR LI AME NTA R Y O FF IC E John Deighan Parliamentary Officer 5 St Vincent Place GLASGOW G1 2DH Tel./Fax: 0141 222 2182 Mobile: 07930 405 313 Email: jdeighan@rcpolitics.org
A Census Profile of Scotland Details for the Scottish census of 2011 have been released by the government showing that the population at that time was 5,295,403. The changing face of belief is shown in the figures indicating a general fall in religious believers. However the number of Catholics has grown numerically to 841,053 and stayed reasonably static at almost 16% of the population. A large fall in other Christian denominations now means Christianity is the religion of 54% of Scots. Islam and other religions make up 2.5% whilst 36.7% say they have no religion. Of the population over 16 years of age 35% are single and never married and 45.4% are married. Just over 8% are divorced and almost the same number are widowed. Adults in civil partnerships were 0.2% of the population.
An agency of the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland
Charity Number: SCO 16650 Edited by John Deighan with contributions from Fr Paul Brooks, Michael J Robinson and Lucille McQuade
The median age (middle point for the population) is 40 years for men and 42years for women. Women are 51.5% of the population. Those under 16 years of age account for 17.3% of the population and an almost similar level are over 65 years of age. Almost 17% of residents were born outside of Scotland. 9% of the population act as unpaid carers. There are many more facts now known about the population of Scotland including things like employment type, car ownership, location and this data will be used to inform the decisions on billions of pounds of government spending for example on where schools, roads or health services need to be located.
Recommended Reading (fr0m newsletter readers) The inspiring and informative novel Magnus by George MacKay Brown is based on the martyrdom of St Magnus in 12th century Orkney. It expertly portrays the struggle between good and evil which everyone contends with in every age. In paralleling the drama of the saint’s death with that of Nazi victim Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Brown shows that whilst the names, locations and governing powers change the drama of salvation is fought out in every soul in every age.
What’s Wrong with the World is a collection of essays written by G.K. Chesterton over a hundred years ago. The investigation has begun into opening the cause for his canonisation . His wit and wisdom expose many of the dehumanising trends in society and politics which we still face a century later.
Please send your own recommendations for future issues
Consultations (with closing date) Consultation on the Draft Public Services Reform (Prison Visiting Committees) (Scotland) Order 2014 (13/01/2014) Development of Electronic Monitoring in Scotland: A Consultation on the Future Direction of the Electronic Monitoring Service (31/12/2013) Serious Crime Prevention Orders in Scotland (31/10/2013) Implementation of the Land Registration etc. (Scotland) Act 2012 (09/12/2013) Renewables Obligation - Consultation On Transition From The RO To Contracts For Difference (02/11/2013) A consultation on the provision of specialist residential chronic pain services in Scotland (27/10/2013) A Discussion Paper on the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (19/11/2013) Draft Seaweed Policy Statement Consultation Paper (08/11/2013) Extending Council Tax Exemption to Articulating Students – Consultation (15/11/2013) Adult Support & Protection Code of Practice (04/11/2013) Management Proposals of Inshore Fisheries Groups (10/10/2013) Easy read version - A Consultation on the future use of resources devolved following the UK Government’s decision to close the Independent Living Fund (01/11/2013) The Long Leases (Prescribed Form of Notices etc ) (Scotland) Regulations 2013 (04/11/2013) Mental Health (Care and Treatment)(Scotland) Act 2003 Consultation in relation to section 268 appeals against conditions of excessive security (25/10/2013) Planning Scotland's Seas: Consultation on Priority Marine Features (13/11/2013) Planning Circular: The relationship between the statutory land use planning system and marine planning and licensing (13/11/2013) Planning Scotland's Seas: National Marine Plan: Sustainability Appraisal Report (15/11/2013) Planning Scotland’s Seas: 2013 - Possible Nature Conservation Marine Protected Areas Consultation (13/11/2013) Planning Scotland’s Seas – Scotland's National Marine Plan Consultation Draft (15/11/2013) Planning Scotland's Seas: Draft Sectoral Marine Plans for Offshore Renewable Energy in Scottish Waters: Consultation Paper (13/11/2013)
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