Jamieson calls for consensus on booze and blades

3 August 2008


Labour leadership contender Cathy Jamieson says that Scotland's enduring and harmful relationship with alcohol and knife violence needs a cross-party consensus for it to be tackled effectively.

The former Justice Minister who led reforms on knife crime – which are being implemented by the current Scottish government – has proposed the setting up of a commission of experts and involving all the major parties to take the party politics out of the debate and identify workable solutions.

Cathy Jamieson said:

"Yes, I want to be Labour leader, but more than that I want a safe and secure Scotland.

"I will work with anyone to deliver this.

"As Labour leader, my first act will be to write to Alex Salmond and the other party leaders to call for a non-partisan commission to look at how we are tackling booze and blade culture - bringing new ideas that build on the work that has gone before.

"This would involve all the major parties and experts from across Scotland.

"I expanded the remit of the the Violence Reduction Unit to cover the whole of Scotland and I agree with John Carnochan, the Unit's Director, that the job of turning this issue around cannot be achieved overnight and will probably take a generation to change hearts and minds but we can't afford to lose a generation to knife violence.

"It's vital that all sides of the political spectrum come together to work on this problem.

"This approach would help take this above narrow party politics bringing together all parties with people who know what works, to examine international examples, and to build a consensus across Scotland on how we can challenge the culture of violence and agree on further steps we can take in relation to alcohol misuse.

"I've met parents who have lost their children to knife violence.

"I've also met victims of knife crime.

"Legislation can make a difference but it's only one part of the solution the other is societal change and that cannot be achieved in isolation.

"I don't want this to descend into political point scoring.

"It is too important an issue and the public rightly expect politicians to come up with a solution. "

Published and promoted by Hugh Henry, on behalf of Cathy Jamieson. All care of 6 Parkinch, Erskine, PA8 7HZ.