- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 February 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 29 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is satisfied that offences against cash and valuables in transit workers are comprehensively recorded and classified.
Answer
The Scottish Financial Crime Group (SFCG) monitors offences against and cash and valuables in transit workers through the British Security Industry Association. They pay particular attention to any migration/displacement of such crimes and any local and regional increases in Scotland. Prevention is the primary focus of its work.
The SFCG brings together specialist investigators from the Scottish Police Service, with their counterparts within the Scottish banking industry and the wider financial sector, to monitor developing crime trends and implement specialist tactics to disrupt criminal activity and protect financial institutions and their customers.
- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 February 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 29 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has held with the banking industry about reducing cash and valuables in transit offences.
Answer
No discussions with the banking industry have taken place. However, we have recently announced a three year funding package of £778,000 for the Scottish Business Crime Centre (SBCC). The SBCC provide practical advice to the business/commercial sectors on how to develop business crime reduction and prevention strategies. Through two groups managed by the SBCC (the Scottish Financial Crime Group and the Scottish Commercial Crime Group) the Scottish Banking Industry liaises with the Scottish Police Service and the Cash in Transit (CIT) Industry. The CIT industry is represented by the British Security Industry Association (BSIA), which is also a member of the SBCC. CIT access issues discussed at SFCG can then be fed into local policing procedures where appropriate. In addition, in March 2007, the Scottish Financial Crime Group ran Exercise Fecund, a table top exercise examining a tiger kidnap scenario within the financial sector. The seminar involved over 300 delegates from law enforcement, banks and the CIT industry.
- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 February 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 29 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with local authorities about reducing cash and valuables in transit offences.
Answer
No such discussions with local authorities have taken place. However, we have recently announced a three year funding package of £778,000 for the Scottish Business Crime Centre (SBCC). The SBCC provide practical advice to the business/commercial sectors on how to develop business crime reduction and prevention strategies. The SBCC deals with Cash in Transit (CIT) issues through the Scottish Financial Crime Group (SFCG) and Scottish Commercial Crime Group (SCCG). While no direct discussions have taken place with local authorities, member police forces deal with local authorities on CIT issues, together with wider aspects of crime prevention, through work carried out by architectural liaison officers (ALOs). Engagement at local and regional levels has led to Crime Prevention through Environmental Design being incorporated as a central strand of City Plans, for example, Glasgow City Plan 2.
- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 February 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 29 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what action it has taken to emulate the reduction of offences against cash and valuables in transit workers in parts of England, such as Birmingham, through work undertaken by cash couriers, the banking industry, the GMB trades union, the Home Office, the Department for Transport and the Association of Chief Police Officers, in consultation with local government and other interested parties.
Answer
We have recently announced a three year funding package of £778,000 for the Scottish Business Crime Centre (SBCC). The SBCC provide practical advice to the business/commercial sectors on how to develop business crime reduction and prevention strategies. Through two groups managed by the SBCC (the Scottish Financial Crime Group and the Scottish Commercial Crime Group) the Scottish Banking Industry liaises with the Scottish Police Service and the Cash in Transit (CIT) Industry. The CIT industry is represented by the British Security Industry Association (BSIA), which is also a member of the SBCC.Prevention is very much the primary focus of the work of the SBCC.
- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 February 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 29 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to ensure consistency of approach by police forces and the sharing of best practice in tackling offences against cash and valuables in transit workers in different parts of Scotland.
Answer
There are agreed procedures throughout all Scottish police forces in respect of police action when dealing with vehicles carrying high-risk loads.
The Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland (ACPOS) chairs a Scottish cash-in transit working group which meets quarterly to address relevant issues, highlight good practice, and to provide support to organisations within the sector. A number of security carriers are represented on the group. The group reports back to ACPOS any relevant issues which require to be addressed on a national basis.
One of the issues presently being addressed through this working group is parking of security vehicles within town and city centres, and the parking tickets and subsequent fines issued. Research is currently being carried out on a national basis to discover the different local authority/council positions on this. It is hoped that following consultation a common sense approach can be developed.
The working group also addresses issues such as CCTV installation, removing obstacles etc, with the intention of ensuring the safety of cash-in transit couriers across Scotland.
- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 February 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 29 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken by police forces specifically to reduce the incidence of offences against cash and valuables in transit workers.
Answer
This is an operational matter for relevant chief constables.
- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 February 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 29 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive how many offences took place in Scotland in (a) 2003, (b) 2004, (c) 2005, (d) 2006 and (e) 2007 involving cash and valuables in transit, broken down by (i) type of offence and (ii) local authority area.
Answer
This information is not held centrally.
- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 February 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 29 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what action has been taken to “design out” crimes against cash and valuables in transit workers through the planning system and, in particular, in respect of access, parking, safer routes, safe docking systems and secure areas.
Answer
We have recently announced a three year funding package of £778,000 for the Scottish Business Crime Centre (SBCC). The SBCC provide practical advice to the business/commercial sectors on how to develop business crime reduction and prevention strategies.
Much of the input regarding access, particularly within City and Town centres, is incorporated within the master planning process, to which Police Architectural Liaison Officers (ALO''s) have input. However, the issue of controlled access is also being incorporated within the ALO Secure By Design (SBD) Public Realm accreditation toolkit, standards which have been developed by The Association of Chief Police Officers Crime Prevention Initiative. The toolkit will be rolled out throughout Scotland. The Scottish SBD Officer is based within the SBCC.
In addition, Scottish Policing has provided input to a review of the Scottish Building Standards Regulations, where the concept of designing out crime was raised, particularly in relation to its status within planning process. This review is on-going.
Finally, access requirements for Cash in Transit vehicles must now also be balanced with more general vehicle restrictions which are a requirement of the Protect and Prepare elements of the CONTEST anti-terrorism strategy.
- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 February 2008
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Current Status:
Answered by Kenny MacAskill on 29 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive what guidance it provides local authorities on the safe accessing of pedestrianised areas by cash and valuables in transit workers.
Answer
We do not provide guidance to local authorities on this issue as it is an operational matter for the Police. However, we have recently announced a three year funding package of £778,000 for the Scottish Business Crime Centre (SBCC). The SBCC provide practical advice to the business/commercial sectors on how to develop business crime reduction and prevention strategies.
- Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 February 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Michael Russell on 19 February 2008
To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S3W-20223 by Linda Fabiani on 4 February 2009, when it will announce its final decisions on applications for funding from Scottish-based organisations that wish to assist in providing emergency relief in Gaza.
Answer
Details of the Scottish Government''s assistance to Scottish Non-Governmental Organisations for their relief efforts in the humanitarian crisis in Gaza were announced on Sunday 15 February 2009.
Further information on the successful projects can be found on the Scottish Government''s website at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Government/International-Relations/internationaldevelopment/idffundingguidance/gaza.
