Whether any person domiciled in Scotland who commits murder abroad and is sent back to Scotland will be subject to the licence provisions w…

Under the terms of the International Convention On The Transfer of Sentenced Persons and other bi-lateral agreements, the enforcement of the sentence on a person who is sentenced to life imprisonment for murder in a foreign jurisdiction and who is transferred, with his or her consent, to Scotland is governed by Scots law. This means that they would, on release, be subject to the same legal disabilities as a person sentenced to life imprisonment in this country. In other words, he or she would be released on life licence and would be liable to be recalled to custody for a breach of the conditions of that licence.As regards those persons who are deported to the United Kingdom or who return to Scotland voluntarily on completion of a prison sentence in a foreign jurisdiction, there are no statutory powers under which they can be made subject to compulsory supervision nor can they be imprisoned other than as a result of a sentence of imprisonment imposed for a crime committed in this country. Consideration is, however, at present being given to what measures might be put in place to deal with such cases. This is a complex area both legally and practically, not least because of the need to ensure that any statutory disabilities placed on such persons do not result in an aggravation of their sentence in breach of Article 7(1) of the European Convention on Human Rights.While those returning to this country on completion of their sentence cannot be made subject to compulsory supervision, the law recognises the need of released prisoners for advice and support. There is a statutory duty on local authorities to make available advice, guidance and assistance to people who request such a service within 12 months of release, including persons deported, or otherwise returning, to this country.Also, by virtue of section 20 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, a sex offender order can be made against a person who has been punished under the law in force in a country or territory outside the United Kingdom for an act which constituted an offence under that law and which would have constituted a sexual offence to which Part 1 of the Sex Offenders Act 1997 applies if it had been committed in any part of the United Kingdom. An order can be made if the person has acted so as to give reasonable cause that an order is necessary to protect the public from serious harm. Once a sex offender order is made, the person becomes subject to the registration requirements of the 1997 Act. Breach of an order is a criminal offence.