MSP for Central Scotland, Graham Simpson has described the scale of absenteeism by offenders due to carry out community payback orders in North Lanarkshire as ‘scandalous’.
In response to a Freedom of Information request by the Scottish Conservatives, figures showed that there were 11,359 instances of absence recorded over the last five years by North Lanarkshire Council.
Of the 10,000-plus absences between 2018/19 and 2022/23, more than 15 per cent – 1,850 – were deemed to be “unauthorised”.
Mr Simpson says the figures are a further “insult” to victims of crime in the region by an SNP Government which has already written off hundreds of thousands of hours of community sentencing work across the country.
He has urged new SNP justice secretary Angela Constance to finally put an end to the SNP’s soft-touch approach, put victims in the region first and ensure that cash-strapped North Lanarkshire Council have every resource they need to crack down on these absences.
MSP for Central Scotland, Graham Simpson said: “These figures are scandalous and are yet another example of the SNP’s soft-touch justice approach in action.
“Not only have SNP ministers been content to write off hundreds of thousands of hours of payback orders, now an eye-watering level of absenteeism among criminals has been exposed in North Lanarkshire.
“It makes a mockery of the justice system when criminals are effectively being given the green light to be absent from community sentences, which, in many cases, are considered lenient in the first place.
“These absences are an insult to victims in the region. They expect this work to be carried out, yet in so many cases offenders are not bothering to turn up at all.
“Community sentencing is failing victims at every turn on the SNP’s watch. The new SNP justice secretary must finally put victims first and ensure cash-strapped North Lanarkshire Council is given every resource they need to tackle absenteeism”.
