Tories defeated in Holyrood vote on offender sentencing

A Tory bid to scrap a “two-for-one deal” which could see offenders spend less time behind bars if they have been on bail with an electronic tag has been voted down by Holyrood.

MSPs are considering new legislation from the Scottish Government which reforms bail laws.

As part of that the Bail and Release from Custody (Scotland) Bill will allow sheriffs and judges to reduce any prison sentence that is imposed by one day for every two days an offender spent on bail subject to electronic tagging.

Tories had called the measure “dangerous”, with MSP Russell Findlay putting forward an amendment to scrap this part of the legislation.

He said: “If the Government is serious about this two-for-one deal for prisoners, they must go away and produce properly researched and a coherent argument for it.”

He said the change, based on similar measures already in place south of the border, could have “unintended consequences” and may also “risk undermining public faith in justice”.

Mr Findlay said it would be a “gift to career criminals and their creative lawyers”, adding that “surely an offender with an electronic tag would be  incentivised to postpone their trial if every single delay they chalk up would result in less prison time”.

However his amendment, to remove the proposal from the legislation completely, was rejected by 28 votes to 85.

That was after fellow Conservative MSP Jamie Greene spoke out against the plans, telling Holyrood: “I would argue time spent in your house, at work, or outside with friends, at shops, with an electronic tag on is in no way the same or equal to  prison time.”

But Justice Secretary Angela Constance said the change was “based on a very similar formula operating in England and Wales”.

She told Holyrood that courts would have discretion when it comes to deciding if time spent on electronically monitored bail should be taken into account when passing sentence, adding that “clearly a person who did not  comply with the relevant curfew  is not likely to have any period accounted for in their custodial sentence”.

But she added: “While a person who is subject to electronically monitored  bail with curfew conditions is not in the same position as someone in custody, such a measure does represent a restriction on their  liberty.

“The Bill therefore entitles the court to take cognisance of this, if it chooses to do so, in a proportionate way when a  custodial sentence is imposed.”

Green MSP Maggie Chapman also spoke in favour of the change, saying Social Work Scotland had described  electronic monitoring as being “punitive, restrictive and intrusive”.

Ms Chapman said: “I believe putting someone on bail and subjecting them to electronic monitoring is a not-insignificant curtailment of their rights, their right to freedom of movement, their right not to be monitored by the state.

“Electronic monitoring is a restriction of liberty, our laws should recognise that.”