 Nifarderwyr, maeел ddigresol yn llunio'r diolch iawn dday, dwyfodol, ond da Ryntgen which I. Pwyllt future yllcast y Sgyntaf yn gwirbwynt yn arddirschetaeth gylaiiedol o yn maen nhor hynny i fynghyn weithredol Wrth hyn, ond opaheo'rŷ ffordd Lifeguats iawn. I, mae mdwy 역시 i fynd am bullwgag ArF miel meithw+, Hand Fins, ac mae Llywodraeth Arnghiniwain i fynd i Ryntgen unrhyw discussions o'i gwestiwch sy'n trefious times as the new facilities are in place. The Scottish Prison Service has taken decisive action to address the shortcomings at Compton Vale through accommodating women at other facilities and undertaking significant refurbishment work. SPS will continue to work hard to ensure that the improved conditions for women in custody are maintained, including taking steps to move young women out of Compton Vale. Although Compton Vale location may still have a use as part of the female prison state in the future, I'm clear that Compton Vale prison, as it is presently configured, will have to close. It will be part of our future plans to consider how and when this will take place in line with our new direction. The Scottish Government remains absolutely committed to providing a high-quality custodial environment for women, but I'm determined to ensure that we move to the right sort of facilities and take a new approach to how we look after women in custody. Let me warmly thank the cabinet secretary for listening to the voice of reformers and for taking what was a bold decision. I share his ambitions for a fair and progressive justice system, but it is essential that in the interim to tackle the known shortcomings that we still know are in the system, the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland and the Committee for the Prevention of Torture and Inhumane or Degrading Treatment or Punishment recently commented adversely on the difficulties and delays caused by the lack of high-security mental health provision for women in Scotland. The Government has been urged to put in place arrangements to ensure swift transfer to an appropriate psychiatric facility from a prison. Last year, it took more than nine months to transfer an extremely vulnerable prisoner to Rampton. In light of the recommendations from those two organisations, what steps has the Scottish Government since taken? Well, I recognise the concern that the member has made. The member will also recognise that the secure environment for those with a mental health condition is a matter for the NHS. In the provision of, for example, that we have at the state hospital and also in our medium and in low security units, I understand and recognise the concern that the member has raised. What I am determined to do, particularly in the prison estate, is to make sure that we have facilities that are fit for purpose. Following the decision that I made regarding Inverclyde, what I want to do is to make sure that we have a process within our criminal justice system that is much more focused on dealing with the underlying causes of criminal activity and mental health is one of those factors. We need to make sure that the system, whether it be the Scottish Prison Service or NHS and its other partners, are working much more collectively and effectively in achieving that. That includes in the provision of custody facilities. As we go forward with the direction that I have now set in terms of our penal policy, I am determined to make sure that we get that balance right in the future estate of the prison estate in Scotland. The cabinet secretary will know that I have been gravely concerned about the number of young women held in Caunton Vale for extended periods of time in solitary confinement in the separation and reintegration unit. The compound distress and trauma underlying behavioural problems for those women contained in this way is immense and the prolonged isolation can only add to the real health. The HMIPS agreed to undertake a thematic inspection of the segregation procedures. Your predecessor advised me in writing that this work would be concluded by February this year. Are you in a position to update the chamber on the progress of that work and whether it will report on time? Are you able to agree to review the checks and balances currently in place around the rolling use of rule 95 and look into the provision of independent advocacy for those vulnerable prisoners? In relation to the segregation provisions at Caunton Vale, I am aware of the issues that are there. The SPS has taken action in order to address some of those issues. I know that there were concerns as well around the procedures that they were using. I recognise that the facilities from which I understand for segregation in Caunton Vale are not suitable for on-going use, and changes have been taken place as a result of that. My understanding at this particular point is that that work is still on-going. However, the Scottish Prison Service is confident that the process that it now has in place is fit for purpose and that it complies with what is required. However, I am more than happy to make sure that the member is kept up-to-date, given her long-standing interest in the matter, kept up-to-date once we have the final details from the inspector on the issue. I welcome the decision, Mr Cabinet Secretary. I think that it was the right thing to do. Understandably, most of the focus today is on the issue of the female prisoners. I understand that, but I have got a significant constituent interest as far as Caunton Vale is concerned. I wonder whether you could say a bit more about what the future might hold for the Caunton Vale estate itself and what discussions are being held with the staff, because, obviously, it is not quite what they expected to be the longer-term outcome. Will the minister commit today to writing to me once he is able to do so, with all the detail that he possibly can, about the future of Caunton Vale and the impact on his staff there? Cabinet Secretary, I think that the member raises a really important point, because in all of the debate around the future of the estate, it is important that we do not forget the professionalism and the dedication of our prison officer staff. We should be tremendously proud of the work that they undertake for us on a daily basis. As I outlined yesterday, we are now going to undertake a period of intensive work with a range of stakeholders before we come to a final position on the configuration of our prison estate going forward. That will involve a combination of appropriate, secure facilities at a national level, to deal with issues such as remand and issues around the short-term prisoners by the use of more community-based services. What I will recognise is that the traditional role of prison officers in prison establishments will inevitably change with the change in our penal policy. It will result in them having to look at the traditional role that they have in, for example, establishments such as Caunton Vale and possibly being based on some of the more community-based facilities. That itself will require a change of working practice, but I also think that change also provides an opportunity for them to be able to develop their skills and knowledge into areas that presently might not be available within the present confines of the prison establishment. On Caunton Vale, my view is that we will continue to require a national facility for long-term, serious offenders. My preferred option would be for that facility to be based at Caunton Vale in a new-build facility, because I believe that particular site is more accessible than in Verclyde. It is a site that will allow us to develop a facility that is fit for purpose and allows us to take forward an approach that will improve the outcome for prisoners and, in doing so, reduce re-offending behaviour among female offenders in Scotland. In light of the Angelini report, the cabinet secretary said that the community served rehabilitation of women as best served in the communities. Will he be reviewing that or when the announcements will be sought for the review of the funding for some of the community programmes? It may be helpful if the members are aware that a range of work has been taken forward off the back of Ailey Shangelini's report, so there are some 16 projects that were commissioned as a result of that particular initiative. The other thing that the member may wish to consider is that the Angelini report was not calling for new money. What the Angelini report calls for is a change in the use of the existing resources. That is what we have been facilitating, a change in the use of existing resources so that they are much more focused on improving the outcomes for women rather than the process that they go through. I think that there may be an element of misunderstanding, and I have saw some comments in the press about a misunderstanding of what the Angelini report calls for. If the member wants to look at the report, he will recognise that it is actually looking for a use of the existing resources in a much more effective way. That is the approach that we have been taking forward since the report was published. 2. Dave Thompson To ask the Scottish Government what data has been gathered on safety following the introduction of speed cameras on the A9. The First Quarterly report covering speed, journey time and journey time reliability to monitor the performance has been published and is very encouraging. On excessive speeding, for example, instances of driver speeding at over 10 mph above the limit have been cut by 97 per cent, leading to an eight-fold decrease in the number of people caught speeding. The figures have been welcomed by Police Scotland, the Road Haulage Association and the Institute of Advanced Motorists, among others. After only three months of average speed camera operation, police injury accident figures are not available and a longer time period is required to evaluate safety performance, typically three years before and after in the case of road safety schemes. It is likely to be the third quarterly report before the first injury accident data can be reported on. Dave Thompson I thank the minister for that reply and welcome the publication of the data, which I believe indicates the action taken by the Scottish Government and the A9 safety group. Will the minister join with me in urging critics of the scheme, such as MP Danny Alexander, to end their reckless and now discredited campaign to undermine those very valuable safety measures? Minister? The evidence says that overall speeding is down from around one in three drivers to one in 20. Excessive speeding, as I have said, is down 97 per cent. Journey times have increased, but in line with predictions, and journey time reliability has improved. There is no evidence that drivers are avoiding the A9. That, I would suggest, is good news for the area and good news for road drivers. As transport minister, my focus is on safer roads and the evidence is that the average speed cameras are playing their part in that. If Mr Alexander and others choose to ignore that evidence, it would be rather unfortunate for them if they are judged to put cheap political point-scoring before the safety of their constituents. Mr Thomson? Thank you, minister. In the Inverness courier this morning, the headline is that they have kind of shifted tax slightly because they were supporting Danny's campaign, I believe, until now. The headline is that it will affect the economy of the Highlands because, as their headline says, journey times have increased by 14 minutes. Of course, it is up to 14 minutes. The average is nine, which means that some have increased by only three minutes. Can the minister maybe elaborate on his view as to what impact that will have on the economy of the Highlands? He mentioned the speed limits, and it may be particularly in relation to the speed limits of HGVs. The reported increase in journey times is exactly in line with our projections and reflects reductions in excess speed on the A9. The road haulage association reported in its trade magazine that there are journey time savings of up to 30 minutes for HGVs travelling between Perth and Inverness. Now, reductions in the number of incidents and the disruption associated with them create better journey time reliability, which does support the economy. Finally, arguing that speeding is good for the economy is simply not defensible. A safer A9 with fewer reckless drivers and better behaviour by the vast majority of road users can only be good for the Highland economy. David Stewart Could the minister confirm, if it is the policy of the Scottish Government to increase speeds of HGVs in single-carageways to 50mph across Scotland if the evidence supports that in the A9 pilot using, of course, evidence from the average speed cameras? Minister? Well, our officials will use all the evidence that is available on specific roads, and the limit will reflect the circumstances on that road. If we have a partnership and a package of proposals, like we have had on the A9, then we can change the speed limit accordingly. We will be flexible, but safety will always be paramount when this Government takes action on Scotland's roads. The speed reduction measures on the A9 were, of course, brought in in conjunction with an increase in the HGV speed limit to 50mph, which Mr Stewart referred to, which came about because of a very vigorous campaign by some people in the chamber and many people outside. When will the Scottish Government assess the impact of that increase in the HGV speed limit? As Mr Stewart said, if it is deemed to be successful, what is the need to stop us rolling it out on other major A roads across the country? We will consider that very closely. We are also mindful of what the UK Government is doing around speed limits, but we will do it with safety as our first consideration. It has been successful as part of that package on the A9, and so, too, will the case be around dualling as well that the Government has committed to. We will look at the evidence from this and other work and take a judgment over what is appropriate for the rest of the country. Thank you. That ends topical question time. The next item of business is a statement by John Swinney on the Smith commission. The Deputy First Minister will take