143.Section 42 makes changes to provisions in Part 2 of the 2003 Act which allow the Scottish Ministers to make changes by secondary legislation to the information which is to be provided under that Part.
144.Section 16(4)(b) of the 2003 Act gives the Scottish Ministers the power, by order, to add new types of information to the list set out in section 16(3) of information which is to be provided to a victim under that section. Section 42(2) adds to this power so that the Scottish Ministers can also remove a type of entry from that list or can alter an existing entry. Section 42(5) makes a consequential change to section 18B of the 2003 Act to reflect this.
145.Section 17A of the 2003 Act makes provision about a victim’s right to make representations about conditions to be imposed on an offender the first time that offender is entitled to be considered for temporary release. Subsection (3) inserts new subsections (5), (6) and (7) into section 17A.
146.New subsection (5)(a) being inserted into section 17A gives the Scottish Ministers a regulation-making power to provide that victims are to be given this right on other occasions, as well as or instead of the first occasion that the offender is entitled to be considered for temporary release. Subsection (5)(b) gives the Scottish Ministers the power to extend the right to make representations to victims of children, where the local authority is to review the child’s case and considers that they might be released, or has already reviewed the case and intends to release the child. Subsection (5)(c) gives the Scottish Ministers the power to add further matters about which the victim can make representations, in addition to conditions to be imposed.
147.New subsections (6) and (7) being inserted into section 17A make further provision about the regulation-making power in subsection (5).
148.Section 17B of the 2003 Act makes provision about the right of a person entitled to receive information under section 16 or 16A to make representations before a hospital direction or transport for treatment direction is made in relation to the offender, or before one of certain decisions which might be taken in relation to an offender subject to a compulsion order and a restriction order is made. Section 42(4) inserts new subsection (7) into section 17B. New subsection (7)(a) gives the Scottish Ministers a regulation-making power to provide that persons are to be given the opportunity to make representations on other occasions, as well as or instead of the first time that a decision is made to grant a certificate suspending the relevant offender’s detention without a supervision requirement being imposed on that offender. New subsection (7)(b) gives the Scottish Ministers the power to specify circumstances in which the right to make representations may be withheld, subject to conditions which must be specified in the regulations.
149.Section 42(6) makes a consequential change to section 88 of the 2003 Act, to reflect the addition of new regulation-making powers in sections 17A and 17B.
Crown Application Part 3 – Victims’ Rights to Receive Information Section 42 – powers to modify information to be given and right to make representations