Stop and search

THIRTY five young people, two as young as 12 and 14, have been stopped and searched by police in Shetland over the last year, statistics have shown.

Isles MP Alistair Carmichael has welcomed a statement by first minister Nicola Sturgeon earlier this week that the practice will now come to an end across Scotland.

LibDem MSPs have led opposition to the use of so-called consensual stop and search of young children.

Under this policy, children as young as five or six have been asked for consent to be searched by police officers where there were no grounds for suspicion that illegal activities were taking place.

Carmichael said: “Scottish government figures show that over 100 young people under 18 in Orkney and Shetland, some as young as 12, have been subject to searches.

“There is, of course, a role for evidence-led, statutory stop and search in the police officers toolkit.

“But consensual stop and search, based on no evidence or cause for suspicion, only serves to undermine the relationship between young people and police.”