Nobbled! SNP ‘tried to sway witnesses to back snoopers’
‘Outrageous’ bid to influence critics
SNP ministers have been accused of ‘nobbling’ groups due to give evidence to MSPs about the Nationalists’ state snooper plan.
Senior government officials systematically targeted witnesses expected to appear before Holyrood’s education committee to discuss the controversial Named Person proposals.
Civil servants arranged meetings with those preparing to testify so they could ‘provide clarification’, say emails released under Freedom of Information laws.
Labour branded the revelations ‘outrageous’ and claimed that ministers were trying to ‘subvert parliamentary process by nobbling witnesses’.
An email on October 9, sent to Police Scotland by the deputy leader of the team steering the Bill through parliament, states the ‘Bill team leader’ was keen to meet the force representative due to give evidence on October 25.
Similar messages were sent to the Children and Young People’s Commissioner, Colleges Scotland, the Centre for Excellence for Looked After Children in Scot-teachers’ land and the charity Barnado’s.
Scottish Labour education spokesman Iain Gray said: ‘The SNP Government told us they had had only routine meetings with these organisations.
‘That was a lie – there was a systematic attempt to influence committee witnesses on the Named Person policy immediately prior to their appearance before MSPs.
‘This is an outrageous attempt to subvert parliamentary process by nobbling witnesses.’
Notes of the meetings show the organisations raised concerns about the Named Person scheme.
Charities and public sector groups were generally supportive but have become sceptical about workload and responsibilities. The union NASUWT indicated it had advised members to refuse to become named persons, while the children’s commissioner feared the threshold for information sharing was being lowered, potentially placing the privacy of children at risk.
The legislation, due to be introduced in summer 2016, will not be implemented until at least 2019.
Scottish Lib Dem education spokesman Tavish Scott said: ‘Parliamentary committees scrutinising proposed laws need information on the effectiveness of the Government’s plans.
‘If that information from organisations changes during the course of committee scrutiny because of Government influence, the committee’s work is undermined.
‘The committee would have to start at the beginning. This is not a good way to produce good law.’
Last year, the Supreme Court ruled aspects of the Named Persons scheme would breach rights to privacy and a family life under the European Convention on Human Rights – namely the proposal which would allow information sharing between public bodies without parental consent.
Education Secretary John Swinney tried to revive the policy by publishing new proposals, but his hopes of introducing a revised Bill last month were dashed when the education committee said it would not give its approval until it received a full code of practice.
The Scottish Government said it had ‘engaged with stakeholders throughout the passage of the Information Sharing Bill and we will continue to do so... to ensure that those affected by developing law and policy are well informed, their concerns are heard and that they can be involved and influence changes that will affect them’.