By Professor John Robertson
In the Guardian today:
Only four out of 10 people in England say they trust the police, with the UK’s biggest force, the Metropolitan police, getting the lowest confidence score, research has found.
The poll surveyed nine English regions, in eight of which female respondents had greater trust in the police than male respondents. But for the Met in London, hit by a succession of scandals, women trusted Britain’s largest force less than men.
From the Common Weal in October 2023:
A report by the Scottish Policing Authority has found that in this last quarter trust and confidence in the Police Service has fallen once again. Overall it was found that on average 5.84 people out of ten had trust in the police in their local area, while only 5.66 had trust in Police Service overall.
5.84 out of ten is 58.4%, 46% better than the average for English forces and 53% better than for the Met.
Another piece of news in the public interest in Scotland but not likely to appear in any media.
Talking-up Scotland 'Albatraz' 
Given the history of the Metropolitan Police in particular, I am surprised that the number is as high as 40%. Despite the cuddly Dixon of Dock Green image, the raison d’etre of the Metropolitan Police has always been to protect the wealthy and powerful and their property against the population which was perceived as loutish. For black people this hostility towards on behalf of the police was proactive – keeping them in their place.
The raison d’etre of the police elsewhere in the UK was pretty much the same and some forces, such as the pre Troubles force in the North of Ireland, were even more hostile and aggressive.
However, in many places there were genuine attempts at obtaining ‘policing by consent’ by the deployment of officers adopting a social role, with ‘beat’ or community officers getting to know local people and gaining their trust. The Violence Reduction Unit set up by Strathclyde Police is an example of a different approach which has had significant benefits.
Unfortunately, several people who consider themselves ‘on the left’ or ‘progressive’ hold very crass stereotyped views of the police. I consider myself ‘on the left’ and ‘progressive’ and I have and have had many friends who are police officers. However, as with any organisation to whom we give power we also need strong transparency and accountability to ensure they stay within their limits.
Things are not perfect, but they are not bad. I am an elderly white, middle class heterosexual male – perhaps that colours my perception.
Alasdair Macdonald.
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“Given the history of the Metropolitan Police in particular, I am surprised that the number is as high as 40%”
Me too.
The scandals connected to them would, if it had been Police Scotland, have had the opposition and media calling for a complete overhaul, mass resignation or firing….not just of senior police officers but also the Scottish minister in charge of them in the Scottish government……and for (bad) good measure the FM too !
The latest scandal ….yep another one….of a Tory MP…involves a surreal situation which reads almost like a Crime novel….involves a Tory MP, Mark Menzies (never heard of him) who is the MP for Flyde in Lancashire, where apparently he called an elderly party volunteer saying he was locked in a flat and needed £5,000 as a matter of “life and death”……An eventual sum of £6,500 was paid to secure his release.
The money is reported to have come out of local Conservative party funds and the party is carrying out an an investigation……I assume the Police are also carrying out an investigation and if not why not…..as questions relating to party funds seems to be a huge issue…..as any Tory in Scotland will tell you….based on another Police investigation being conducted in Scotland on the SNP and the Tories in Scotland response is one tantamount to ‘Cut off their heads”….politically that is…..
Mr Menzies offered to repay the funds but claimed local Tories who controlled the account the money came from said he didn’t need to, a source told the paper….
The Times also reports Mr Menzies used a total of £14,000 – in several payments stretching back four years – from campaign funds to pay his personal medical bills. ( Get the Tories in Scotland onto it…this is their area of expertise and too they are 100% committed to showing no mercy on this) and The Times says the money was not repaid…..oh dear….I do think this is definitely a job for the Tories in Scotland to pursue this voraciously and thus ensure that this does not go unpunished…..I mean they do present themselves as Scotland’s Justice warriors do they not !….and this is a scandal connected to their party…so fair’s fair surely.
The Conservative Party was made aware of the allegations in January…..that’s 3 months sitting on this….while they have cast aspersions at the dispatch box in WM upon the SNP Police investigation via snide remarks from various Tory ministers…..
He , Menzies, has been a parliamentary aide to three Tory ministers…but wait for it…he resigned the last of these roles in 2014, after a newspaper reported allegations from a Brazilian male escort that he paid him for sex and asked him to buy an illegal drug……and as I write this comment I assume that Dross is sliding off the moral high horse upon which he thinks he is entitled to sit while casting aspersions upon our governments ministers , our FM and too the SNP Investigation…..and ‘Ferries’….and too the recent demanded for resignation of Michael Matheison…..
But there’s more….as he, Menzies, was also someone who resigned via another scandal related to him as he was appointed and is currently a prime ministerial trade envoy to Colombia, Chile, Peru, and Argentina, which is an unpaid role……unpaid role….but still someone representing the UK government…..lucky for him he is not an SNP MSP…..as the Tories here would have been calling for his resignation and too the FM’s resignation for appointing him for such a role post a scandal connected to him in the past……
A Conservative Party spokesman said: “The Conservative Party is investigating allegations made regarding a member of parliament. This process is rightfully confidential.”
“Rightfully confidential”…..well they have sat on this for 3 months and now the cat is out of the proverbial bag they think it is fitting that they , as a party, can conduct their own investigation confidentially….and thus they get to decide what happens…..oh the luxury these Tories have at WM…..not a luxury that is ‘allowed’ for the SNP is it…..especially when the branch office and their media insist complete perfection and too that no supposed (but is it) scandal should go unpunished and not widely publicly and highlighted via the media when tis connected to the SNP.
But wait…we have a Tory government minister use the same old Tory chestnut of ‘mitigating circumstances’ when it was reported that he, the minister, was “Asked if the Conservatives had a particular problem with their MPs’ behaviour, Mr Shapps replied: “In every walk of life there will be people who go off the tracks as it were, and it’s important you do make sure action is taken swiftly, but also in some of these cases where perhaps mental health and other things are involved, that people are helped to a better path.”
“Go off the tracks in every walk of life”(yes let’s blame everyone even those not elected as an MP as in a trusted position……….”Make sure action is taken swiftly” (like sitting on it for 3 months is swift ?)……..”some cases where mental health & other things are involved” , that people are helped to a better path”…..how noble…..as in let’s not just call it a duck even when it quacks like a Duck and walks like a Duck…….well that’s convenient….would that then be only of it involves a Tory politician Mr Shapps.
Now I think this case calls for Blue tents outside this MP’s house as seems to me there must be evidence to substantiate his story but also…..why did he have to pay off these “bad people”…..what was it that they had on him…..I mean this comes on the back of yet another scandal on yet another Tory MP William Wragg…..who was another one that the Tories sympathised with….as in another ‘Look after your own exercise”……and then there was also Scott Benton….Owen Paterson….actually I stopped keeping count….as did the Tories in Scotland obviously….given how they think they can take the higher moral attitude they do against the SNP.
The moral lesson here is that no one in Scotland should ever let a Tory politician or a Tory newspaper in Scotland criticise the SNP as within their own political home there is far more that is shocking and scandalous than could ever be connected to the SNP as a party…..and , as a message that is true and substantiated …..you can be confident in knowing both the Tories and their media in Scotland know it too…..
NMRN
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*not widely publicly and highlighted via the media when tis connected to the SNP
not also be widely publicly highlighted via the media when tis connected to the SNP.
Sorry was writing too fast and also too much…as per.
If other errors in my comment then I apologise….though I do know perhaps , as a comment, it is perhaps too long to read….I have form on this…LOL
NMRN
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It has been revealed by the unionist media that Jaikie Rowing has no confidence in Police Scotland after being ignored by them for making 7000 Hate Crime complaints in the last week . Most of these complaints concerned the failure of Police Scotland to prosecute her for her Trans-Muggle comments , which her followers on Twits-R-US have ‘liked’ a squillion times .
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Love it.Chuckle. Joe
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England trust must be ‘DIRE THEN’
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