Scottish Government Public Consultation on draft bills: FOI release

Information requested

"A list of the bills where some or all of the proposed sections were consulted on in draft in a public consultation before being introduced, since 1 May 2018, and for each bill consulted on in this way whether a whole draft bill was provided or only extracts from it".

Response

I have listed below the information you requested in relation to relevant Scottish Government Bills which were consulted on between 1 May 2018 and 26 April 2024, when your request was received.

The Scottish Government undertook the following public consultation since 1 May 2018 which included a draft Bill:

• Gender Recognition Reform: https://www.gov.scot/publications/gender-recognition-reformscotland-bill-consultation-scottish-government/
• The Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill was introduced on 2 March 2022

The Scottish Government undertook the following public consultations since 1 May 2018 which included draft provisions, however neither have been introduced:

• Reforming the criminal law to address misogyny: https://consult.gov.scot/criminaljustice/reforming-the-criminal-law-to-address-misogyny/
• Ending Conversion Practices: https://consult.gov.scot/equality-and-human-rights/endingconversion-practices/

The Scottish Law Commission (SLC) provides the Scottish Government with independent advice on Scots law reform, which often involves examining whole areas of law and making recommendations for improvement. The SLC reports and recommendations provided to the Scottish Government contain draft Bills. When the Scottish Government consults on SLC recommendations, the relevant SLC Report which contains a draft Bill is referenced, however while such Scottish Government consultations seek views on the recommendations and draft Bill, they may not themselves contain new draft Bills or provisions. Information on SLC Reports and consultation are available at:

• https://www.scotlawcom.gov.uk/law-reform/consultations/
• https://www.scotlawcom.gov.uk/law-reform/law-reform-projects/completed-projects/

It might also be helpful if I explain that it is expected that a public consultation process will be conducted as part of the Bill’s development, unless there are specific reasons for not doing so. This will often be in the form of public consultation on proposed legislative measures or policies rather than on draft provisions or draft Bills. Information on public consultation undertaken in relation to Government proposals for Bills is available from Scottish Government consultation hub (https://consult.gov.scot/consultation_finder).

In addition to formal consultation, other methods can be used to involve stakeholders in the development of a Bill, for example workshops, roundtables, targeted engagement with key stakeholders and/or delivery partners. It can be the case that other methods may be more appropriate for obtaining certain information and engaging with the people the Government need to hear from.

No information has been provided on Bills introduced to the Scottish Parliament which the Scottish Government does not have responsibility for. Information on public consultation in relation to non- Government Bills introduced during the same period can be found on the Scottish Parliament’s website: https://www.parliament.scot/bills-and-laws/proposals-for-bills.

If you do not have internet access to obtain information on consultations undertaken from the websites noted above, then please contact me again and I will send you a paper copy.

About FOI

The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at http://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.