The executive will make a decision on whether to postpone the Protectionof Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Bill in the next week, sourcesrevealed.
The move comes after the Scottish Parliament's Education Committee lastmonth said information sharing plans in the Bill should be abandoneduntil more consultation had taken place.
The committee said that while "appropriate information sharing" was inchildren's best interests, the workload that the Bill's proposals couldcause meant that further consultation was needed.
MSPs on the committee also said the Scottish Parliament should not letthe Bill progress further until the executive has published the draftguidance and subordinate legislation connected to the Bill.
Liberal Democrat MSP Iain Smith, the committee's convener, said: "Thecommittee is concerned at the growth of a culture that is increasinglycharacterised by the desire to eliminate all risk and the negativeeffect this may have on children. We need to have a debate about how tobalance the need to protect children and the need to ensure theirwelfare."
Kathleen Marshall, Scotland's children's commissioner, backed thecommittee's call. She believes the information sharing part of the Bill"draws the net both too widely and too loosely".
"In its current state, the Bill would completely undermine youngpeople's rights to confidentiality in a way that would act against theirinterests.
The Scottish Parliament and executive should pause and take stock beforepassing the Bill. We need to examine the real risks and put effectivesafeguards in place.
The proposals need to be refocused and scaled down.
"I am committed to working with the executive, the parliament and otheragencies to reach a more focused, workable and appropriatesolution."
If the Scottish Parliament backs the committee's recommendations theresulting delay is likely to mean the Bill will miss its chance tobecome law before May's elections. Should this happen, the ScottishExecutive would need to restart the process of taking the Bill throughthe Scottish Parliament from scratch.
A Scottish Executive spokeswoman told Children Now that ministerswelcomed the committee's recommendations and were considering thereport. She added that the executive would do all it can to get the Billpassed before the Scottish Parliament elections.
The Bill was launched by the executive in response to recommendationsmade by the Bichard Inquiry into the Soham murders.
