The first item of business today is SB118 in the name of the government. The question for debate is whether the Parliament agrees to the general principles of the Association Football (Alcohol) (Scotland) Bill.

Association Football (Alcohol) (Scotland) Bill

An Act of the Scottish Parliament to permit the limited consumption of alcoholic beverages at association football matches in Scotland; to make provision for the monitoring of the sale of alcohol at association football matches in Scotland; and to allow the limit of alcohol consumption to be limited at the request of Police Scotland.

1 Sale and consumption of alcohol

(1) Alcohol shall be permitted to be sold and consumed at an association football fixture and ground, as designated in schedules 1 and 2.

(2) The sale and consumption of alcohol must be done in accordance with:

• (a) the requirements of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 and all subsequent legislation,

• (b) the requirements of the Alcohol (Scotland) Act 2018 and all subsequent legislation,

• (c) this Act, and

• (d) requirements imposed by the sporting authority responsible for the competition in which the fixture is taking place.

(3) A person who consumes, or attempts to consume, alcohol within view of the pitch commits an offence.

(4) A person who commits an offence under subsection (3) is liable, on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding level 1 on the standard scale.

(5) A constable may issue a fixed penalty notice of £30 to any person whom the constable reasonably believes has committed an offence under subsection (3).

(6) Section 20(2) of the Criminal Law (Consolidation) (Scotland) Act 1995 is hereby repealed.

(7) Alcohol may not be served to a spectator in any container which would classify as a controlled container under Section 20(8) of the Criminal Law (Consolidation) (Scotland) Act 1995.

2 Consumption Limit

(1) A person who consumes, or attempts to consume, more units of alcohol than the consumption limit commits an offence

(2) A person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable, on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding level 1 on the standard scale.

(3) A constable may issue a fixed penalty notice of £30 to any person whom the constable reasonably believes has committed an offence under subsection (1).

(4) The consumption limit shall be the lowest of:

• (a) seven units of alcohol; or

• (b) a limit imposed by the police under section 3.

(5) The operating club/authority of the association football ground as designated in schedule 1 and the license holders for any alcohol sales in the association football ground must take reasonable measures to:

• (a) prevent a person from consuming, or attempting to consume, more units of alcohol than the consumption limit in force at that fixture,

• (b) prevent a person who is under the legal age to do so from purchasing or consuming alcohol,

• (c) raise awareness among spectators of the consumption limit and restriction on consuming alcohol in view of the pitch, and the penalties for doing so, and

• (d) ensure spectators seeking to purchase alcohol have a reasonable opportunity to determine the number of units of alcohol contained within each drink offered for sale.

(6) For the purposes of this section, the number of units of alcohol in a drink shall be rounded to the nearest whole number.

3 Police Powers

(1) No less than 48 hours prior to the scheduled kick-off of each fixture in a sporting competition designated in schedule 2, the police shall review the fixture and make a decision on if to exercise powers within this Section to control the sale and consumption of alcohol.

(2) In determining if to exercise any power within this Section, the police shall consider:

• (a) if there is a history of violence at fixtures involving either or both of the teams involved in the fixture;

• (b) any intelligence suggesting violence is likely at the fixture;

• (c) if there is a history of racist, sectarian, or otherwise bigoted behaviour at fixtures involving either or both of the teams involved in the fixture.

• (d) if the presence and / or consumption of alcohol is likely to significantly increase the risk of violence or bigoted behaviour at the fixture.

(3) Should the police find that the presence and / or consumption of alcohol is likely to significantly increase the risk of violence or bigoted behaviour at the fixture, they must take whichever of the following measures they believe reasonable to mitigate such risk:

• (a) reducing the Consumption Limit to a level they specify;

• (b) prohibiting the sale of alcohol within the association football ground, including any pre or post match periods where spectators are permitted in to be in the ground;

• (c) prohibiting the sale of alcohol within the stadium before a match has begun;

• (d) prohibiting the sale of alcohol within the stadium after a certain amount of time, as determined by the police, has elapsed in the fixture;

• (e) restricting the sale of alcohol to certain parts of the stadium, as specified by the police;

• (f) any combination of the above measures.

4 Designation of Association Football Grounds and Events

(1) This Act applies only to association football grounds and events specified in schedules 1 and 2.

(2) Where an association football match is taking place at a ground not designated in schedule 1, but in a competition designated in schedule 2, the ground shall be treated as if it were designated in schedule 1.

(3) The Scottish Ministers may make regulations to amend schedule 1 to reflect:

• (a) a change in the name of any designated association football ground;

• (b) a new association football ground being used by any club or authority listed as an operating club or authority;

• (c) a change in which club or authority operates the ground;

• (d) a change in the composition of the Scottish Professional Football League and successor competitions arising from restructuring, or the relegation or promotion of member clubs.

(4) The Scottish Ministers may make regulations to amend schedule 2 to reflect:

• (a) a change in the name of any competition designated,

• (b) a new competition being created, or

• (c) a designated competition being discontinued.

(5) Otherwise, the Scottish Ministers may by regulations amend schedule 1 or 2 as they consider reasonable to ensure the continued functioning of this Act.

(6) Regulations under subsections (3) and (4) are subject to the negative procedure and regulations under subsection (5) are subject to the affirmative procedure.

5 Interpretation and Saving

(1) This Act does not apply to the sale of alcohol in corporate hospitality suites.

(2) Nothing in this Act affects responsibilities for the sale of alcohol under the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005.

(3) A fixed penalty notice offers the person to whom it is issued the opportunity to discharge liability to conviction for the offence by payment of a fixed penalty to a local authority specified in the notice.

(4) The Scottish Ministers may by regulations substitute a different penalty to be paid as a result of a fixed penalty notice.

(5) Regulations under subsection (4) are subject to the negative procedure.

6 Commencement

This Act comes into force six months after Royal Assent.

7 Short Title

The short title of this Act is the Association Football (Alcohol) (Scotland) Act 2020.

Schedules

SCHEDULE 1: ASSOCIATION FOOTBALL GROUNDS

SCHEDULE 2: SPORTING EVENTS

(1) Association football matches in the Scottish Professional Football League

(2) Association football matches in the Scottish Highland Football League

(3) Association football matches in the Scottish Lowland Football League

(4) Association football matches in the competition for, or in qualification for competition in, —

• (a) the Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup

• (b) the Scottish League Cup

• (c) the Scottish Professional Football League Challenge Cup

• (d) the UEFA Champions League

• (e) the UEFA Europa League

• (f) the UEFA European Championship

• (g) the FIFA World Cup

(5) International association football matches in Scotland

(6) Other association football matches which come under the jurisdiction of the Scottish Football Association

This Bill was written by the Right Honourable Sir Duncs11 GCT KT KCB CBE PC QC MP MSP (Angus, Perth, and Stirling) FRS, on behalf of the Scottish Government.

No opening speech was provided.

This debate will end at the close of business on Sunday, the 26 July, and will go to a vote the day after.