Scotland

Fri 15 Jul 2005

Police praised for racism fight

IAN SWANSON SCOTTISH POLITICAL EDITOR

SCOTLAND'S police forces were praised today for their efforts to combat racism.

An independent report published by the Commission for Racial Equality found an "encouraging picture" of policing and race relations north of the Border.

It said the police were engaging with ethnic minority communities to build trust and confidence; all forces were developing training in race issues; and although the number of ethnic minority officers remained low, efforts were being made to improve recruitment.

The report's positive conclusions about policing and race in Scotland are in stark contrast to the situation in England and Wales, where the CRE said it found "ice at the heart" of the police service.

The report said the Scottish forces had made good progress on race, but warned against complacency and said there were still significant improvements which could be made.

The review was prompted by a television documentary "The Secret Policeman", broadcast in October 2003, which revealed racist behaviour among police recruits south of the Border.

CRE chairman Trevor Philips, who was in Scotland for the publication of today's report, said: "The picture in Scotland is very different from that in England and Wales. Some of what is happening in Scotland will provide practical leadership for the rest of Great Britain. Scotland's police forces should be commended for the progress they are making on race equality.

The report said there was evidence in every force of engagement with minority communities and of positive steps to build trust and confidence in the police.

But it said while there was engagement with community leaders, there was less evidence of engagement with the wider community.

The report said data on recruitment and staffing suggested the under-representation of people from minority ethnic communities in the Scottish police service had not improved.

And it voiced concern that the numbers of minority ethnic support staff also fail to reflect the proportions of people from minority ethnic communities.

Doris Littlejohn, who chaired the review team said: "In Scotland, police forces are clearly committed to eradicating racial discrimination and engaging positively with ethnic minority communities.

"But as well as strengths we did identify some weaknesses. Most notably, the number of staff drawn from ethnic minority communities remains low.

"However, the review team is clear that this is not from want of trying.

"Considerable efforts are being made to attract police officers from ethnic minority backgrounds but, there are still barriers to recruitment which the police, in partnership with community organisations, must overcome."

The report's recommendations included establishing a uniform national recruitment process; greater transparency and monitoring of promotion procedures and more sharing of information and good practice between forces.

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