Achi news desk-
However, they have been told that it is up to the Scottish Government and the Scottish Parliament to introduce legislation specific to those caught up in the scandal north of the border.
READ MORE: Victims of Scottish post offices will need to wait for Holyrood legislation
More than 900 convictions have been linked to the software, including around 60 in Scotland.
The UK Government’s Bill will overturn convictions of theft, fraud, false accounting, money laundering and any related offenses given in connection with prosecutions in England and Wales brought between 23 September 1996 and 31 December 2018.
The First Minister has repeatedly said that his choice is to pass a Legislative Assent Motion to allow the UK Government’s legal solution to apply north of the border.
However, ministers in London have been equally clear that as justice is devolved and prosecutions are carried out in a completely separate system it is up to ministers in Edinburgh to find their own solution.
Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain KC has also said that there can be no quick fix for Scottish victims and that it is “vital that due process is followed.”
He said the “proper process” for people to clear their names was through the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission (SCCRC) and the High Court of Appeal.
On Thursday, Justice Secretary Angela Constance wrote to UK enterprise minister Kevin Hollinrake setting out 15 “relatively simple” amendments that could extend the UK Bill to Scotland, she said.
He said this would “ensure there is no delay in removing convictions and access to compensation.”
A UK Government spokesman said: “In Scotland, the Crown Office and the Procurator Fiscal Service are prosecuting.
“Is it right then that the reversal of convictions in Scotland is determined, carried out and scrutinized by the Scottish Government and the Scottish Parliament.
“The Scottish Government have already indicated that they are bringing forward legislation and we are working closely with them as we develop legislation to ensure fair outcomes for victims across the UK.”
READ MORE: Post Office: Constance demands an urgent meeting with the UK Government
During the First Minister’s Questions, Mr Yousaf said that there were difficulties in identifying exactly which cases in Scotland were linked to Horizon.
Unlike south of the border, the Post Office cannot bring its own prosecutions under Scots Law.
He said: “We want no delay at all, we will continue to work with the UK Government to do what is the simplest thing, which is to ensure that UK legislation applies to the whole of the UK.”
One of the SNP’s backbenchers, Fergus Ewing, asked him to “publish the proposed Scottish legislation in draft form, rather than let the issue drag on further into the autumn.”
Mr Yousaf said there was “nothing stopping” the government from introducing specific Scottish legislation.
“And we are working on how a bill would look if the UK Government did not accept the very reasonable amendments that have been presented to ensure that the Westminster bill is for the whole of the UK.”
He said the Scottish Government would have to wait until the UK Government’s bill had passed, which he said would mean those caught in England would be able to get compensation before their counterparts to north of the border.
“We cannot allow a situation where sub-postmasters and sub-postmistresses in Scotland are treated differently to the way they are treated in England in relation to access to compensation,” he added.
