Transport police merger voted in

A Holyrood committee has backed plans to merge British Transport Police in Scotland with the national force – despite Tory and Labour MSPs refusing to back the proposal.

A majority of members of the Scottish Parliament’s justice committee said they believed the integration of BTP into Police Scotland would provide a “more integrated and effective approach” to policing.

But three Conservative MSPs, committee convener Margaret Mitchell and fellow Tories Oliver Mundell and Douglas Ross, as well as Labour’s Mary Fee all dissented from this statement. Ms Mitchell said: “The committee did not arrive at a unanimous position on the bill’s general principles with some members backing an alternative approach.”

After the 2016 Scotland Act extended new powers to Holyrood, ministers have put forward legislation to give power over railway policing to Police Scotland and the Scottish Police Authority (SPA) watchdog.

The Railway Police (Scotland) Bill also requires the SPA and chief constable to have regular contact with train operators on rail policing matters.

But BTP deputy chief constable Adrian Hancock has told MSPs the plans could create an unnecessary border for officers policing the railways, while unions have warned the move could lead to big delays for travellers,

Meanwhile the RMT, the union representing transport workers, told the committee it had not ruled out taking industrial action if the plan goes ahead.

Ms Mitchell said the committee had made a “number of clear recommendations to ensure that the same level of service that the travelling public currently enjoys is maintained” if the merger goes ahead.

“The committee did not arrive at a unanimous position”