Justice system is perpetuating inequality and letting women down, says minister

Justice Secretary Keith Brown said the problems of tackling inequality and giving more support to victims were priorities for the Government.

Scotland’s justice system is perpetuating inequality against women, the Justice Secretary has said (Chris Radburn/PA) (PA Archive)

The Scottish Government has published a “vision for justice” with a range of reforms planned over the next four years, as Scotland’s Justice Secretary warned the current system was perpetuating inequality and letting women down.

Keith Brown argued that there is “deep-rooted women’s inequality” in Scotland that is perpetuated by the justice system that was “designed by men for men” as he highlighted violent and abusive behaviour towards women as a priority for the Government

Announcing a strategy for justice reform, he said he wanted victims to experience fewer delays in the criminal justice system, with an increased focus on the needs of women and girls, particularly those who experience sexual abuse.

Opening a debate about the strategy, he said: “The Government is committed to tackling behaviour that stems from systemic, deep-rooted women’s inequality, which leads to violent and abusive behaviour by men directed at women and girls, precisely because they are women and girls.

Our justice system was historically designed by men for men, which simply does not meet the needs of women and children in our society

Keith Brown, Justice Secretary

“You must recognise the role our justice system plays in perpetuating this inequality.

“Our justice system was historically designed by men for men, which simply does not meet the needs of women and children in our society.

“Survivors tell that how they are treated by justice services affects their feelings of confidence in the justice process. More conviction rates for sexual crimes are also a real cause for concern.

“And that’s why we want to improve how the justice system can better serve women and ensure that survivors have trust in the criminal justice process.”

Mr Brown also said reforms would include establishing a victims’ commissioner to improve the experiences of people who suffer from crimes and community-based punishments rather than prison for many offenders.

Cabinet Secretary for Justice, Keith Brown, set out the Government’s ‘vision for justice’ at Holyrood (Fraser Bremner/Scottish Daily Mail/PA) (PA Wire)

Suggesting that “community interventions are more effective than short prison sentences”, Mr Brown said: “We can have the puerile practice of trying to look tough on crime after crime has happened – and that’s after victims have suffered – by locking more people up for longer periods and building more and bigger prisons, paid for presumably by slashing police numbers by around 17,000.

“But not tough enough to make sure that the difficult decisions which are required which will actually lead to less crime being committed, and that means fewer victims and less suffering.”

Scottish Labour’s Pauline McNeill said victims of sexual crimes often “feel treated as criminals” as she called for accusers to have access to more information and contact from the courts as their case progresses.

On the issue of prisons, she added: “The report notes Barlinnie has been operating at more than 40% over capacity in the last couple of years, but I actually think it’s a lot longer than that.

“But the vision also notes that international evidence suggests that remand is associated with negative effects that may hinder longer term risks from crime including an increased risk of suicide, mental distress, disintegration of social supports and family ties, and disruption to employment that increase the likelihood of reoffending upon release.

“So, no one should need any convincing that one of the jobs we must do in this Parliament is reduce the remand population and we need to tackle this urgently.

Responding to the announcement for the Scottish Conservatives, the party’s justice spokesman, Jamie Greene, said there were “perennial problems” which have not been addressed by ministers “promising action, but under delivering for the victims of crime”.

“The Government motion today, I’ll admit, contains a number of sensible points around reoffending and giving victims a voice but it fails to take a shred of responsibility for any failures in the status quo,” Mr Greene said.

“The pandemic has placed enormous pressures on our justice system, no one denies that.

“But the issues I’m raising today are chronic ones, not Covid ones.

“The Government – we’ve heard it again today – frequently rests on the laurels of its mantra that overall crime is falling, but let’s take a look at that.

“The Government very rarely admits from the front benches that violent crime in Scotland has gone up every year since 2014, or the shocking rise in LGBT hate crime – up 31% In the same period – or the doubling of sexual offences in the last decade.”