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Chamber and committees

Official Report: search what was said in Parliament

The Official Report is a written record of public meetings of the Parliament and committees.  

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Dates of parliamentary sessions
  1. Session 1: 12 May 1999 to 31 March 2003
  2. Session 2: 7 May 2003 to 2 April 2007
  3. Session 3: 9 May 2007 to 22 March 2011
  4. Session 4: 11 May 2011 to 23 March 2016
  5. Session 5: 12 May 2016 to 5 May 2021
  6. Current session: 12 May 2021 to 12 August 2025
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Displaying 1198 contributions

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Criminal Justice Committee

Policing Vulnerable People

Meeting date: 8 January 2025

Liam Kerr

Good morning, everyone. My first question is for Assistant Chief Constable Paton. Police Scotland has a data dashboard that helps to provide an understanding of mental health demand on police time. The cabinet secretary told the committee last year that it would be rolled out to other partners. How is the dashboard performing, what are you doing with the data and has it been rolled out?

Criminal Justice Committee

Policing Vulnerable People

Meeting date: 8 January 2025

Liam Kerr

That is obviously important work. You have also set up a mental health task force and a mental health strategic oversight board. His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland has recommended that you produce a mental health strategy and a delivery plan.

However, some evidence that the committee received in advance of today’s meeting suggests that the impressive array of work that is being done at strategic level is not translating into operational delivery for front-line officers. ACC Paton, what is Police Scotland’s view of that assessment? Do you agree with it? What are the potential barriers to the translation to operational delivery?

Criminal Justice Committee

Policing Vulnerable People

Meeting date: 8 January 2025

Liam Kerr

You heard me ask about the data dashboard, and I am pleased to say that ACC Paton gave a pretty positive report. We know from one of your earlier letters that it was intended to be rolled out by the end of last year, but I think that I heard earlier that it is not quite there yet. Will the data arising from the data dashboard be shared with the Scottish Government, or is it operational and only for Police Scotland? What is your view on the roll-out if the timescale has not been met?

Criminal Justice Committee

Policing Vulnerable People

Meeting date: 8 January 2025

Liam Kerr

Good morning to the cabinet secretary and her officials. Cabinet secretary, you will have heard in the previous session—you will no doubt have considered what was said—that ASPS and the SPF have, in their submissions to the committee, highlighted several concerns. One of those is that the police, rather than other organisations, are having to lead on this area.

I give you the opportunity to give your views on that and to say whether you think that there is sufficient input and leadership from other organisations and portfolio areas to address mental health and policing.

Criminal Justice Committee

Policing Vulnerable People

Meeting date: 8 January 2025

Liam Kerr

I will speak quickly, convener. I will put my question to ACC Paton, if I may. Section 297 of the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003 gives the police powers to remove

“a person ... in a public place ... to a place of safety”

if they reasonably believe that there is

“a mental disorder”

and some other conditions apply. The police cannot remove the person from their home, and such removal requires there to be a mental disorder, which police officers are not necessarily trained to assess. I go back to Dr Steel’s point that police officers often respond to mental distress rather than mental disorders. Should the committee consider whether the 2003 act needs to be amended or improved to help you to do your job?

Criminal Justice Committee

Policing Vulnerable People

Meeting date: 8 January 2025

Liam Kerr

On that point—

Criminal Justice Committee

Policing Vulnerable People

Meeting date: 8 January 2025

Liam Kerr

I will be very quick, convener. On that point, ACC Paton, you have talked a lot about the improvements and the good work that is going on, but ASPS and the SPF were very clear that that is not necessarily translating to the front line. If I ask them in a year’s time whether that has improved, will they tell me that there has been a tangible improvement at the operational level?

Criminal Justice Committee

Policing Vulnerable People

Meeting date: 8 January 2025

Liam Kerr

In 2021, the Lord Advocate made a statement on diversion from prosecution. She stated that recorded police warnings could be given for possession of any class of drugs. I appreciate that you might need to come back to me on this, but do you have statistics to hand on how many such warnings for possession were given pre and post that announcement and positioning? Is that broken down for different substances? Crucially for our purposes today, are you aware of any direct impact of that positioning on policing time spent on people experiencing harmful substance abuse?

Criminal Justice Committee

Policing Vulnerable People

Meeting date: 8 January 2025

Liam Kerr

I am very grateful for that—thank you.

Criminal Justice Committee

Policing Vulnerable People

Meeting date: 8 January 2025

Liam Kerr

I am very grateful—thank you.