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CPS apology "not good enough" says child sex abuse victim of Aber serial paedophile
After pursuing legal action against the CPS for breaches of Article's three, six and eight of the Human Rights Act (freedom from torture and inhuman or degrading treatment, right to a fair trial, right to private and family life), CPS responded that the organisation were not responsible for duties under the Human Rights Act in 1997, because the Act did not come into effect until 1998.
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Daily Record
an hour ago
- Daily Record
West Lothian school transport cost prompts question over free bus pass use
The council pays £1, 245 per pupil to provide 'free' school transport - but with the Scottish Government also providing free bus passes to under 22s, one councillor questioned why pupils were not being asked to use normal buses. Pupils in West Lothian could be asked to use public bus routes to get to school, after questions were raised over the cost of providing special transport. The council pays £1, 245 per pupil to provide 'free' school transport - but with the Scottish Government also providing free bus passes to under 22s, one councillor questioned why pupils were not being asked to use normal buses. And the council has confirmed they are looking at 'crossover' areas where normal public transport may be a suitable alternative. The cost to the council for school transport in the last year was more than £3m - but the 'use the bus pass' option is not the simple answer it might appear. Conservative councillor Alison Adamson, speaking at a recent Environment Policy Development Scrutiny Panel meeting, said: 'I hate using the expression free costs the council £1,245 to take each child to schools. That's not free in anyone's language.' 'I don't understand the Scottish Government saying that anyone up to a certain age gets free transport, but we have to find the money for school children to get to school so my question is. Can we find a way of tapping into free transport budget.? 'Why is that free but councils have to find funding to get children to get to school. I find that very difficult to understand. A lot of people would too? Given how much money it costs I find it very very difficult to swallow.' Chairing the meeting Labour's Tom Conn said 'I think the answer will be that the council is obliged to take pupils to school. We have a responsibility under legislation to support that, but I take your point.' He added that school contract buses 'take children from A to B', directly to schools, whereas commercial networks don't. In East Lothian a proposal in this year's budget by the ruling Labour group to encourage schoolchildren who have nationally funded under-22 free bus passes to stop using school passes was challenged by opposition groups. Under the Education (Scotland) Act 1980, the council has a statutory responsibility to provide school transport for those pupils living over the qualifying distance for home to school transport. Section 42 (4) of the Act clarifies that the statutory walking distance is two miles for any pupil under the age of eight, and three miles for any other pupil where attending their catchment school. The council can discharge this duty through contracted school transport, using council owned vehicles, utilising the commercial bus network or even through mileage payments to parents for self-travel. The council will consider a number of factors when considering which transport option is most appropriate including available resources, the needs of pupils and the suitability and availability of the bus network. The total 2024/25 cost for school buses was £3,194,373. A West Lothian council spokesperson said: 'Although commercial bus routes may exist they may not provide sufficient connection to meet the council's statutory obligations for school transport. 'West Lothian Council has a generous home to school policy which provides transport for secondary pupils living 2 or more miles from their catchment school and 1.5 miles for primary pupils. 'However, work is ongoing to assess the crossover between the school network and the local bus network to identify if there are any opportunities to enhance and supplement the options for transport for school pupils in the future.'
Rhyl Journal
3 hours ago
- Rhyl Journal
‘We don't want to go back to court', says women's group over gender ruling delay
For Women Scotland (FWS) challenged the meaning of a woman in the Gender Representation on Public Boards (Scotland) Act, with the UK's highest court ruling the definition in the 2010 Equality Act referred to biological sex. The decision is likely to have far-reaching implications for transgender people in accessing services, but the Scottish Government has declined to make changes to guidance until the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) issues its own guidance, which is expected to take place in the coming months. But speaking at a fringe event at the Scottish Conservative conference in Edinburgh, FWS co-director Susan Smith said the group was considering a further legal challenge against the Government. Speaking to journalists after the event, she said: 'We have spoken to the Scottish Government and asked them to withdraw some of this guidance, just to say that it's under review – they don't have to re-issue anything at this point – because it's clearly unlawful, we really do need some action. 'They're telling us they have to wait for the EHRC revised guidance and we don't believe this is true.' Ms Smith added that, if a woman were to be assaulted in prison by a transgender prisoner, the Government could be taken to court by the victim. 'I think they need to step up and take a bit of responsibility because these things are under their remit,' she said. She added: 'We don't want to go back to court, we really, really don't, but if we don't see some action that may be something we will have to consider.' Ms Smith said the group is speaking with its lawyers but she would not say if there was a timeline for action to begin. The co-director stressed that if ministers were concerned about a challenge to their guidance from the pro-trans rights side of the argument, they should be worried about one from FWS and other such groups too. 'They seem worried about a legal challenge from the other side,' she said. 'But my message to them would be they should be more worried about a legal challenge from the people who have the law on their side.' Ms Smith was joined at the fringe meeting – which was hosted by Tory MSP Pam Gosal – by former foreign secretary James Cleverly. Mr Cleverly was part of the Conservative-led government which blocked the Scottish Government's controversial gender reforms. The Government proposed removing the need for a diagnosis of gender dysphoria as a requirement for obtaining a gender recognition certificate – a process known as self identification. The move was scuppered by then-Scottish secretary Alister Jack, who used Section 35 of the Scotland Act to block the legislation. Mr Cleverly told attendees the move showed the 'importance of the union'. 'This issue was clearly spiralling out of control, badly out of control,' he said.
North Wales Chronicle
3 hours ago
- North Wales Chronicle
‘We don't want to go back to court', says women's group over gender ruling delay
For Women Scotland (FWS) challenged the meaning of a woman in the Gender Representation on Public Boards (Scotland) Act, with the UK's highest court ruling the definition in the 2010 Equality Act referred to biological sex. The decision is likely to have far-reaching implications for transgender people in accessing services, but the Scottish Government has declined to make changes to guidance until the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) issues its own guidance, which is expected to take place in the coming months. But speaking at a fringe event at the Scottish Conservative conference in Edinburgh, FWS co-director Susan Smith said the group was considering a further legal challenge against the Government. Speaking to journalists after the event, she said: 'We have spoken to the Scottish Government and asked them to withdraw some of this guidance, just to say that it's under review – they don't have to re-issue anything at this point – because it's clearly unlawful, we really do need some action. 'They're telling us they have to wait for the EHRC revised guidance and we don't believe this is true.' Ms Smith added that, if a woman were to be assaulted in prison by a transgender prisoner, the Government could be taken to court by the victim. 'I think they need to step up and take a bit of responsibility because these things are under their remit,' she said. She added: 'We don't want to go back to court, we really, really don't, but if we don't see some action that may be something we will have to consider.' Ms Smith said the group is speaking with its lawyers but she would not say if there was a timeline for action to begin. The co-director stressed that if ministers were concerned about a challenge to their guidance from the pro-trans rights side of the argument, they should be worried about one from FWS and other such groups too. 'They seem worried about a legal challenge from the other side,' she said. 'But my message to them would be they should be more worried about a legal challenge from the people who have the law on their side.' Ms Smith was joined at the fringe meeting – which was hosted by Tory MSP Pam Gosal – by former foreign secretary James Cleverly. Mr Cleverly was part of the Conservative-led government which blocked the Scottish Government's controversial gender reforms. The Government proposed removing the need for a diagnosis of gender dysphoria as a requirement for obtaining a gender recognition certificate – a process known as self identification. The move was scuppered by then-Scottish secretary Alister Jack, who used Section 35 of the Scotland Act to block the legislation. Mr Cleverly told attendees the move showed the 'importance of the union'. 'This issue was clearly spiralling out of control, badly out of control,' he said.
