Justice Secretary brands Dundee disorder ‘appalling and wholly unacceptable’

Monday night’s scenes of disorder in Dundee were “appalling and wholly unacceptable”, the Justice Secretary has said.

Keith Brown made the comment in Holyrood’s chamber on Tuesday in response to an urgent question on the matter from Scottish Conservative MSP Maurice Golden.

Footage shared by locals on Monday night showed youths appearing to light fires on roads, blocking access and forcing cars to drive over grass verges in the city’s Kirkton area.

Pictures showed wheelie bins on fire and flames and smoke filling streets.

Police dressed in riot gear were present in the area from about 5.30pm, with one officer injured in the chaos.

Damage was caused to a school and a number of vehicles, police confirmed.

Councillor John Alexander, of Dundee City Council, described the scenes as being similar to “a war-torn nation”.

Mr Golden asked the Justice Secretary what action the Scottish Government is taking to prevent any further disorder and to aid the community in clean-up efforts.

Mr Brown said the scenes were “appalling and wholly unacceptable”, adding that the situation will have been “extremely distressing” for both the local community and emergency services in attendance.

He told the chamber that further action is a matter for Police Scotland, but said he “can provide the assurance that those investigations are ongoing just now with the police”.

“Police Scotland and the SFRS (Scottish Fire and Rescue Service) and local authorities have been making great efforts to prevent and to respond effectively to any disorder in the run-up to Bonfire Night, including through the police’s Operation Moonbeam,” he said.

“We will be engaging further with these bodies and others to learn lessons and provide what further support we can.”

The Justice Secretary said that those who experienced the chaos first-hand were “very grateful for the rapid deployment of additional police officers from elsewhere to bolster the efforts of local police officers”.

He added: “That, of course, will be factored into the police’s response over the course of the next weekend, and in particular, November 4 and 5.”

Mr Brown said that police had told him in a meeting on Tuesday that the fireworks legislation recently passed by the Scottish Parliament is “hugely helpful”.

But Mr Golden pointed out what he called a “flaw” in the Fireworks and Pyrotechnic Articles (Scotland) Bill, whereby those convicted of anti-social behaviour do not need to disclose such information when applying for a fireworks licence.

He asked: “Will the Cabinet Secretary admit the SNP mistake on this and review the decision in light of last night’s event?”

The Justice Secretary replied: “The member – I’m not saying deliberately – but may have jumped over the fact that two vital provisions of that Act are enforced now, so in terms of proxy buying for young children.

“And also, crucially, in terms of the aggravating factor, if somebody is found guilty, the court is now, as of the passing of that Act, required to take that into account in terms of any disposal.”

He called for support towards the police, SFRS and local authorities to ensure Dundee “does not have to experience what we saw last night again”.