The lead lawyer for the public inquiry looking into scandal-hit hospitals in Scotland has quit.
12.06.2023 - 08:27 / dailyrecord.co.uk
A leading human rights lawyer has challenged Humza Yousaf to remove the prison service’s “licence to kill” by ending its immunity from prosecution over custody deaths.
Aamer Anwar has spoken out five years after Katie Allan, 21, and William Lindsay, 16, took their own lives at a jail for young people amid claims of serious care failings.
Katie died at Polmont Young Offenders Institution, near Falkirk, in June 2018 while serving a sentence for a driving offence.
William’s death was in October of the same year while he was on remand at the same prison.
The Crown Office finally confirmed in May a joint fatal accident inquiry (FAI) will be held.
However it has also emerged that despite “credible and reliable evidence” for a successful criminal prosecution under health and safety laws, no action can be taken because the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) has Crown immunity.
Anwar said: “Despite the families of Katie Allan and William Lindsay being told there was credible evidence that the prison service breached the Health and Safety at Work Act by failing in its duty of care to Katie and William, there was absolutely nothing that could be done, other than issuing a written censure.
“Police Scotland do not have that immunity, so why should the prison service.
“The reason is that our prisons come under the control of Scottish Ministers and are therefore immune from prosecutions of this type.
“This is the case despite the fact we are constantly told by first ministers and justice secretaries that they have no control over what the SPS does with prisoners.
“All that can happen is that the Health and Safety Executive can summon the SPS for a Crown Censure - but it is not legally binding and nor can the SPS be prosecuted for
The lead lawyer for the public inquiry looking into scandal-hit hospitals in Scotland has quit.
Naman Ramachandran Music Box Films has acquired U.S. distribution rights to Richie Adams’ “The Road Dance,” the Scottish adaptation of John McKay’s 2002 bestselling novel. In the film, Kirsty MacLeod (Hermione Corfield) dreams of a better life away from the isolation that suffocates her in a small village on an island in the Outer Scottish Hebrides. Suppressing these aspirations, she sees her lover Murdo (Will Fletcher) conscripted for service in WWI, soon to set off and fight alongside the other young men from the village. A road dance is held in their honor the evening before they depart, and it’s on this fateful evening that Kirsty’s life takes a dramatic and tragic turn.
A Government-funded environmental group is calling for a ban on single use disposable vapes to be considered.
Lewis Capaldi is stepping away from music… for now.
Lewis Capaldi has broken his silence following his performance at Glastonbury on Saturday and has announced that he will be taking a break from touring 'for the foreseeable future'.
A parent council has called for community policing patrols at an Edinburgh primary school after staff reported "regularly feeling threatened and unsafe at work".
Scotland is facing a crisis in its National Health Service due to Covid and Tory austerity - but Brexit has caused further deadly delays in our hospitals.
This is the moment over 100 bikers lead the funeral procession for a popular Scots rider who passed away from bowel cancer.
Tributes have been paid to a man who died following a disturbance in the Scottish Highlands, after a teenager was arrested in connection with his death.
Young Prince William and Prince Harry were seen with their father, King Charles, in a sweet throwback snap shared by the Royal Family to celebrate Father's Day on Sunday.The Princes are in their early teens in the photograph, which looks like it could have been taken at Balmoral, the Royals' Scottish estate, frequented yearly by them over the past century or more. King Charles – then Prince Charles – could be seen donning a kilt, which is traditional Scottish dress, with a green jumper, socks and a sporran.
The body of a man who went into a lake on Saturday night, sparking a frantic search, has been recovered.
Police hunting for a notorious drugs baron who has gone on the run from an open prison say he may be in the Edinburgh area. Sean McGovern was reported missing at around 10pm on Sunday, June 11, after absconding from HMP Castle Huntly, near Dundee.
An airline is on the hunt for anyone with a Scottish accent to feature in a new advert - and nab free plane tickets in the process.
Shortly after series 10 of Love Island kicked off it was revealed that Islanders Ella Thomas, 23, and Tyrique Hyde, 24, already know each other, although the encounter wasn’t a memorable one for Tyrique as he claimed he couldn’t remember. Tyrique is a semi-professional footballer who originally hails from Essex and currently plays as a midfielder for East Sussex club Lewes FC.
Fresh calls have been made to the Scottish Government to drop plans to label 10 per cent of the country’s seas Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs).
The mum of a student who died after taking magic mushrooms wants changes to the law to ban them from being produced.
A call has been made to reopen a historic Perthshire castle closed to the public for over a year.
Ofgem is lowering its energy price cap by 17 per cent from the current £3,280 per year to £2,074 for the average household in Scotland, England and Wales from July. The regulator announced its latest energy price cap last month, however, consumers are likely to feel little relief with bills remaining well above pre-pandemic levels.
Footballer Josh Wright is set to star in a new travel series on BBC One.
As temperatures across parts of Scotland are set to soar this weekend, many of us might be looking for way to keep that bit cooler - especially at night.