Part of First Minister’s Question Time – in the Scottish Parliament at on 26 September 2024.
Douglas Ross
Conservative
We would welcome that, because our Amendment would strengthen the bill and fill a void that even HMIC has recognised.
The truth is that, although Police Scotland may have let down the Wilson family, the Government has been letting down police officers and the communities that they serve across Scotland. Officer numbers are now at their lowest level for 17 years. The SNP used to promise that it would put 1,000 additional officers on Scotland’s streets, but numbers are down by 1,200 compared with when the SNP created Police Scotland a decade ago.
The number of major investigation team detective inspectors—who investigate the most serious crimes, including murders such as that of Alistair Wilson—is down by a third. Police Scotland is so stretched that it is no longer able to investigate every crime.
Quite frankly, the SNP has left our police to fight crime with one hand tied behind their back, and the results are clear. Violent crime is at its highest level in a decade, and our prisons are so overwhelmed that SNP ministers have been forced to release prisoners en masse. Does the First Minister agree with his deputy, Kate Forbes, who said that, under the SNP, policing has been “stretched to breaking point”?
Question Time is an opportunity for MPs and Members of the House of Lords to ask Government Ministers questions. These questions are asked in the Chamber itself and are known as Oral Questions. Members may also put down Written Questions. In the House of Commons, Question Time takes place for an hour on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays after Prayers. The different Government Departments answer questions according to a rota and the questions asked must relate to the responsibilities of the Government Department concerned. In the House of Lords up to four questions may be asked of the Government at the beginning of each day's business. They are known as 'starred questions' because they are marked with a star on the Order Paper. Questions may also be asked at the end of each day's business and these may include a short debate. They are known as 'unstarred questions' and are less frequent. Questions in both Houses must be written down in advance and put on the agenda and both Houses have methods for selecting the questions that will be asked. Further information can be obtained from factsheet P1 at the UK Parliament site.
Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.
As a bill passes through Parliament, MPs and peers may suggest amendments - or changes - which they believe will improve the quality of the legislation.
Many hundreds of amendments are proposed by members to major bills as they pass through committee stage, report stage and third reading in both Houses of Parliament.
In the end only a handful of amendments will be incorporated into any bill.
The Speaker - or the chairman in the case of standing committees - has the power to select which amendments should be debated.
