Scotland has its first female Chief Constable – and there is no doubt that Jo Farrell now has one of the toughest jobs in UK policing.
The justice system in Scotland was left reeling from not guilty verdicts in the Alex Salmond trial and the fallout from the Rangers prosecutions. Farrell will have to negotiate her way through the current criminal probe into the SNP finances, which led to the arrest of Nicola Sturgeon.
She has already dealt with sensitive political matters, having led Durham Constabulary while it investigated two major figures. Her previous job saw her in the eye of the storm when Boris Johnson’s former adviser Dominic Cummings was accused of flouting lockdown rules, including a visit to Barnard Castle in Durham.
Farrell later faced a similar row when Labour leader Keir Starmer was probed for drinking beer at a Labour party gathering during lockdown on her patch. Both of these cases needed a cool hand at the tiller and she will need all of that expertise to steer Police Scotland through the current SNP probe.
However, it could be argued that an even greater challenge facing Scotland’s top officer is dealing with the “institutional racism” alleged by her predecessor. When Sir Iain Livingstone declared that his force was rife with racism, sexism and prejudice, it seemed like a historic moment for policing in Scotland.
He received plaudits for highlighting the problem but is now leaving office before sorting the issue out. We wish Farrell well in tackling this persistent problem.
It will be her greatest achievement if she moulds Police Scotland into a force fit for the 21st century.
Do you have confidence in the new Chief Constable? Share your views in the comments.
Safety comes first
Teachers must be given the confidence to report classroom violence whenever they see it. But some are being discouraged by education chiefs from flagging concerns in case it makes their school look bad.
That was the message shared with MSPs by teaching unions and parents’ groups during a summit at the Scottish Parliament yesterday. The one-off meeting was called following the Daily Record’s on-going campaign against violent videos filmed by youths and shared online.
Our Kids... Our Future has called on tech giants to clamp down on this content and prevent clips filmed in and around schools from going viral. Teachers are on the frontline and must be able to call situations as they see them.
It’s no use if some schools pretend there are no issues in classrooms when evidence is being uploaded to social media by the perpetrators. Pupils, staff and parents have a right to safety in schools.
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