'Named Person' Challenge Fails

A coalition of campaigners has lost a legal challenge to Scottish Government plans to appoint a named person for the country's children.

Charities and individuals launched a judicial review, claiming the move was outside Holyrood's legal competence and in breach of human rights.

But Lord Pentland said in a judgement at the Court of Session that the case "fails on all points".

Michael Veitch is from the Christian Institute, one of the coalition members.

He's telling us he's disappointed but not disheartened:

Meanwhile, Aberlour's Chief Executive SallyAnn Kelly said:
 
"Aberlour has supported the 'Named Person' provisions all along and we welcome Lord Pentland's verdict. We recognise that this puts into law what should be best practice already and will give every family in Scotland a single point of contact should they ever wish to access support. We’ve worked closely with government to ensure that parents are firmly in control of this relationship and that in the vast majority cases will never have any cause to contact their named person. These changes will ensure that families in difficulty are less likely to slip through the net and instead will be aware that there is someone known to them who is there to help should they need it.
 
"We understand that this ruling will be disappointing for those who brought the original petition. We will continue to work closely both with them and with Scottish Government, to deal with any concerns they still have, to make these provisions as workable as possible and to ensure their successful implementation."