Police fear stop and search ban is gift to drunken yobs
POLICE are worried they will soon be left powerless to deal with the growing problem of drunken and rowdy teenagers.
Officers receive hundreds of calls every week about disruptive gangs of youths.
Yet they fear they are about to lose the most effective weapon in the ongoing battle against antisocial behaviour.
Existing ‘stop and search’ powers which police have long used to target boozed-up young louts are about to be scrapped amid fears they breach human rights.
The Scottish Government is consulting about whether police should be given other powers, specifically to search for alcohol.
However, rank and file officers are deeply worried that any new powers will come with so many restrictions and red tape that using them will be ‘effectively impossible’.
The consultation ended on Friday and the submissions are due to be published soon. But the Scottish Police Federation (SPF) has revealed that, in its submission, officers have made clear their profound concerns. Callum Steele, General Secretary of the SPF which represents rank-and-file officers, said the result was likely to be a ‘mess’.
With alcohol becoming more affordable, the problem of boozed-up youngsters is becoming a crisis in some areas. According to recent figures, nearly half of 13-year-olds in Scotland (44 per cent) have reported being drunk at least once, a statistic which rises to 70 per cent for 15-year-olds.
At the moment, police can use general stop and search powers to confiscate alcohol and move youngsters on. But these will be scrapped in the next six months.
SNP Ministers have proposed more limited rules giving officers the ability to search youngsters for alcohol but only in specific situations. The details have yet to be agreed.
A Scottish Government spokesman said no decision had yet been made on the power to search children for alcohol.
It is understood that Police Scotland has yet to endorse the new plans and has suggested a further review of the situation in its official response to the consultation.