Stage 4 - Consulting on the guideline
Once the committee is satisfied with a guideline, it will be put before the full Council to consider whether we can consult formally. We must, by law, consult Scottish Ministers and the Lord Advocate before we submit a guideline to the High Court for approval.
We can also consult anyone else we think can help to make sure that the guideline is useful. We aim to engage with as wide and diverse an audience as possible in developing our guidelines. At its first meeting the Council agreed a public consultation would be carried out on every guideline.
We will start the public consultation process by publishing a consultation paper, along with a draft guideline and draft impact assessment, on our website.
The consultation paper will set out the background to the guideline. It will also explain why we’ve taken the approach we have in the draft guideline, and ask a number of questions about this. The impact assessment will set out what we think the costs and benefits of the guideline will be, and the likely effect of the guideline on the criminal justice system generally.
The consultation period will normally last for 12 weeks. But there may be specific reasons for making that period longer or shorter.
We are keen to hear from all those who want to comment on a guideline. This includes individuals as well as criminal justice organisations, charities, and other organisations which have an interest in the guideline.
We may also consult in different, less formal, ways with targeted individuals and interest groups if we think that could be useful.