Fixed penalty guidelines "should stay private"
19 Aug 08
Justice Secretary says correct balance served by non-publication by Crown Office
The public interest does not require the publication of the guidelines for prosecutors over which offences can be dealt with by fiscal fines, Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said yesterday.
Mr MacAskill was responding to defence lawyers who say the Crown Office should reveal the guidance in order to address concerns that serious offences are being treated with fines.
The Justice Secretary said that summary justice reforms meant that less serious offences should be dealt with by the fixed penalty system - not serious assaults or sexual attacks, and it was not for him to direct the Crown on the matter. The guidelines were not made public for good reason, and "I think the correct balance is served for the public".
He described the defence lawyers' request as "special pleading from vested interests", and said the country shouldn't go back to situations where defendants would plead not guilty for 18 months and then plead guilty to a relatively minor offence.
The Scottish Information Commissioner Kevin Dunion has confirmed that he has no authority to investigate an appeal relating to information held by the Lord Advocate. In July of this year, he received an appeal from the Edinburgh Bar Association in relation to the disclosure of the guidelines, but advised them that he could not investigate.
In responsed to Mr MacAskill's claim in a BBC radio interview that the Information Commissioner had decided it was not appropriate for the guidelines to be released, Mr Dunion said: "It is not the case that I have looked at the Crown Office guidelines and determined that it would be inappropriate to release them. I simply have no power to come to such a view or to make such a determination in any case involving information held by the Lord Advocate."