FIRST and foremost, Sir Stephen House was right to resign, and no one doubts the man’s commitment to public service. On behalf of Scottish Labour I would like to extend my thanks to him for his years of service.
However, there is no question it had been a torrid summer, indeed a torrid existence so far, for Police Scotland, where the force seemed to stumble from controversy to tragedy.
The result of that was that public confidence in officers was undermined, and the once world-class reputation of Scottish policing was dragged through the mud.
House’s decision to step down is the first step in a process which allows that reputation to be rehabilitated, the force to be reformed and Scotland once again to be seen as a benchmark for world-class policing.
However, House was not the sole problem with Police Scotland, and his protracted departure simply allowed him to be used as a human shield by SNP ministers in Edinburgh.
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Because it was under the watch of this nationalist government that we have seen cuts to police budgets and civilian staff numbers, local services shut down, a target-driven culture which powered the stop and search culture, the arming of police without informing the public or parliament, allegations of spying on journalists and controversy over deaths in police custody.
Police Scotland is the only major public service reform taken on by this government and its entire existence has been overshadowed by some form of controversy.
A former SNP leader has effectively branded it a failure.
Scottish Labour supported the creation of a single force that would allow best practice to be shared and local accountability to be enhanced. That is not what has been implemented.
Indeed, the shambles surrounding Police Scotland can be summed up by VAT. Unlike other forces such as the London Met, Police Scotland cannot claim back rebates on VAT. This is the result of a completely botched job made by Kenny MacAskill when setting up the force, despite civil service advice.
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The SNP government trumpets a promise of an extra 1,000 police officers. However, these extra officers aren’t all out on the streets; they are performing back office duties because of cuts to control room staff, warrant officers and other vital roles.
With parliament returning this week, the first thing that should happen is the first minister and the justice minister should admit responsibility for failings on their watch.
Graeme Pearson is Scottish Labour’s justice spokesman and former deputy chief constable of Strathclyde Police