News / Tavish wants police control rooms kept open
SHETLAND MSP Tavish Scott is calling on the Scottish Government to reverse Police Scotland’s planned closure of its Aberdeen and Inverness control rooms later this year.
The proposed closures are being examined by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland (HMICS) in the wake of the tragic loss of two lives on the M9 near Stirling after police failed to attend the crash site for three days after being alerted by a member of the public.
HMICS’s investigation is due to report at the end of October but the SNP government and Police Scotland are going ahead with the programme of closures.
Scott said: “The Scottish Government should step in and cancel these control room closures. Police Scotland’s chief will force these closures unless he is stopped by ministers. This is now a real test of public accountability and confidence over policing in Scotland.
“There is now a cross-party consensus amongst opposition MSPs opposed to the Scottish Government’s centralisation of our vital public services. It will be interesting to see if SNP and other independence-supporting MSPs back the needs of the Highlands and Islands or back the SNP government.”
He added:‘‘The tragic crash on the M9 and the lack of response by Police Scotland demonstrates how vital local expertise is for effective policing.
“A single, centralised police force is not working and centralising control rooms will make this worse. The HMICS investigation is very important. The government must heed its findings before any further closures take place.”
Become a member of Shetland News
Shetland News is asking its many readers to consider paying for membership to get additional features and services: -
- Remove non-local ads;
- Bookmark posts to read later;
- Exclusive curated weekly newsletter;
- Hide membership messages;
- Comments open for discussion.
If you appreciate what we do and feel strongly about impartial local journalism, then please become a member of Shetland News by either making a single payment, or setting up a monthly, quarterly or yearly subscription.
Already a member? Sign in to hide this message.
