John Swinney has come under criticism from Rape Crisis Scotland after his Programme for Government pledged "personal leadership" on tackling violence against women and girls but was accused of lacking concrete funding and timescales. The First Minister told MSPs he would confront "sexism and misogyny" through new legislation, including a Misogyny Bill intended to outlaw harassment and abuse rooted in misogyny, but the charity's chief executive said the response fell short of the "tangible" action needed to match the scale of the crisis.

Separately, SNP ministers faced criticism over delays to a long-promised specialist sexual offences court, part of last year's Victims, Witnesses and Justice Reform Act, after the Crown Office revealed no funding had yet been allocated. The court, expected to cost at least £1.44 million to set up and nearly £500,000 annually to run, is now not due until "over this parliament", which runs to 2031, with the government saying costs will only fall from 2027/28 onwards. Opposition politicians, including Scottish Tory justice spokesman Stephen Kerr and Lib Dem MSP Yi-pei Chou Turvey, branded the SNP's approach superficial and accused ministers of treating victims as an afterthought.