Lockerbie bomber move discussed

[This is the headline over a story on the BBC News website. It reads in part:]

Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill has met Libyan government officials to discuss their bid to have the Lockerbie bomber transferred from Scotland.

He has already met some UK relatives of those who died in the bombing and spoken to the US attorney general.

Libyan authorities applied two months ago to move Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi from Greenock Prison to a Libyan jail.

The Scottish Government said the talks were part of the "ongoing process" of considering that application.

A spokesman also revealed that Mr MacAskill will listen to representations from US victims' families later this week.

Last month Mr MacAskill stressed that he wanted to have all the relevant information before making a decision on the application. (...)

The prisoner transfer application was received early in May, and a decision would normally be made within 90 days - although this could take longer if further information is required.

[The full text can be read here. Further relevant reports are to be found in The Scotsman and The Times. The report in The Times contains, with regard to the possibility of compassionate release, rather than prisoner transfer, the following sentence:

"A Scottish government spokeswoman said that al-Megrahi's legal team had not submitted a request for his release on compassionate grounds."

If the Scottish Government Justice Department believes that the Justice Secretary cannot consider or grant compassionate release without an application by the prisoner (and a recent letter to me from an official of the Department adopts the same stance) it is seriously in error in law. The relevant statutory provision contains no such requirement. It provides (Prisoners and Criminal Proceedings (Scotland) Act 1993 (c 9), section 3):

'Power to release prisoners on compassionate grounds

'(1) The [Scottish Ministers] may at any time, if satisfied that there are compassionate grounds justifying the release of a person serving a sentence of imprisonment, release him on licence.

'(2) Before so releasing any long-term prisoner or any life prisoner, the [Scottish Ministers] shall consult the Parole Board unless the circumstances are such as to render consultation impracticable.']