The move towards a single police force for Scotland will only make it easier for private cartels to try and start breaking up a public police force so police services can be hived-off for profit
A single Scottish police force will endanger the whole of Scotland – as it is so easy to then award a Scottish-wide contract to private security company G4S (as is happening with policing in England and Wales). It is so much harder when there are eight forces and hundreds of people currently taking decisions – but a single force will make it so easy for G4S to be allowed to take control of the whole of Scotland’s policing in one fell swoop
In fact it is Scotland which needs to see the big picture which demonstrates how fast G4S has established cartel control of Britian’s entire criminal justice system (amongst other things) – not just policing. Someone has to highlight the real and present danger of G4S and the easiness a single Scottish police force can be taken over by G4S – which is exactly why a single Scottish police force should not be formed. (The same is true for a single Scottish fire service – as yes, you guessed it, G4S provide fire “services” too – or hope to gain the contract to control Scotland’s entire fire service with SNP reforms.)
As the Scottish Tories, SNP and Scottish Labour all back a single force, there has been no public discussion of the dangers posed by forming a single Scottish police force (and with the Managing Director of G4S already holding secret talks with two Scottish Police forces and sharing a platform with Kenny MacAskill at last year’s Scottish Police conference – what does this tell us about the future of a Single Scottish police force?)
One Labour MSP has descriibed the paper attached as “apocolyptic” but stated he still backed a single Scottish police force – despite the obvious real and present danger. We should have the option – pay a few more pounds Council Tax or open up Scotland to police privatisation – because this is the real agenda the politicians and police leaders do not want discussed; it’s not about saving a few bob, it is about much much more
I’d like members of the Jimmy Reid Foundation Network to read this paper and if, like me, believe Scotland and the whole of the United Kingdom) is in real danger of a single private sector company taking control of policing and our criminal justice system – SHOUT OUT TO THE PEOPLE OF SCOTLAND – make it an issue for the Scottish Justice Committe and the people in the Council elections – because you are one of our only lines of defence because Scottish political parties have formed a cartel opinion – where no one else is allowed a voice.
When services are privatised – any company can buy over the company (and so buy control of the service). We need to tell the SNP, Labour and Tories of Scotland – our policing is not for sale – at any price. A single police force is a price to high to save a few pennies – let Scots have the option to pay more Council Tax to keep G4S out of Scotland’s policng – we deserve a choice.
In the light of events in England – Lincolnshire police leaders hand G4S a control to run their entire police force and recently the Guardian reporting every force in England and Wales are out to tender this has completely changed the landscape which is why this reform of Scottish policing should be put on hold to allow a national discussion to take place.
Jimmy Reid put his life on the line against the might of government power – I hope those who support the Foundation created in his name will speak out against the cartel opinion of Labour, SNP and Tory on this matter.
Mel Kelly