The final item of business today is a members’ business debate on motion S4M-13739, in the name of Linda Fabiani, on 100 years of women in policing. The debate will be concluded without any question being put.
Motion debated,
That the Parliament notes that 2015 marks 100 years of women in policing, following Edith Smith being appointed in August 1915 as the first female officer in the UK with full powers of arrest; notes that this milestone is being celebrated by Police Scotland with a series of events around the country; thanks the retired officers, Dorothy Parker and Barbara McInally, who are both from East Kilbride, for sharing their memorabilia and memories at what it considers a successful event in the town, which was hosted by Police Scotland Lanarkshire Division on 22 June, and recognises the diverse policing roles that women now hold and the positive role women officers have played, and continue to play, in keeping everyone safe in their communities.
17:03
I thank everyone who signed the motion. I see that we have Graeme Pearson, a former police officer, with us. Although he is not very old, he will be familiar with the struggle that women have had in ensuring parity in the police force over the years.
As the motion states, this year marks a century since Edith Smith was appointed as the first female police officer in the United Kingdom with full powers of arrest. That milestone is being celebrated by Police Scotland, and the Lanarkshire division held a successful event in East Kilbride in June to mark the occasion. It was a fascinating event and I was enthralled by the memorabilia on display, courtesy of George Barnsley of the Lanarkshire police historical society. I was also fascinated by the stories behind that memorabilia, and I thank two thoroughly modern officers, Chief Inspector Gillian Scott and Chief Inspector Louise Skelton, who were instrumental in ensuring the event’s success. I thank them both very much.
The history of women in policing in Scotland and the UK as a whole is absolutely fascinating. It was in 1883 that the Metropolitan Police employed, on a licence and under police supervision, a female visitor to visit women convicts. The women’s police service was founded in 1914 by Nina Boyle, who was a suffragette journalist, and Margaret Damer Dawson, who was an anti-white-slavery campaigner. It was staffed by volunteers.
The way in which women’s involvement in policing came about is really interesting, because all those things were controversial. Edith Smith’s appointment was controversial. The Home Office advised that women could not be sworn in, because they did not count as proper persons in the eyes of the law. However, in Grantham the chief constable and the watch committee continued to give Ms Smith their full support, because they thought that her work was vital, given the very particular problems that the town faced as a result of war conditions.
It was after the conclusion of war that it was felt that women could start to play more of a part in the police force but, even then, public opinion and the opinion of the establishment militated against that, and there was still huge resistance, despite what women had done during world war one, when they had had to take over many of the roles that men had previously carried out. Even then, it was stated that the duties performed by women should be restricted to those involving females and child victims or complainants. It was up to local police authorities to decide whether women were needed in their area.
The women in Scottish policing timeline is interesting. In the period 1915 to 1918, Emily Miller joined the City of Glasgow Police and Jean Thomas joined Dundee City Police. In 1918, chief constables were asked to consider appointing women “where necessary”. In 1922, the chief constable of Dundee City Police was forced to publicly deny that he had a woman working as a constable, even though he did. I was fascinated by that—I do not know what he did with her or how he managed to hide the fact that she was there. I could not find out any further information—there is a job for our former police officer, Graeme Pearson.
Times moved on, and in 1924 women constables were granted the power of arrest in Scotland. In 1940, Jean Malloy was promoted to detective sergeant and became the first woman in Scotland to gain rank. In 1954, a woman was promoted to chief inspector. At the same time, we had the first uniformed sergeants. It was not until 1962 that policewomen who were attached to the criminal investigation department were recognised as detective constables, and it was only in 1968 that policewomen were allowed to remain in post after marriage. [Interruption.] It is all right, Fiona—my colleague Fiona McLeod is having a problem with that.
That timeline brings me back to the event in East Kilbride, at which Christina McKelvie and I were privileged to meet and talk to two smashing ladies—Dorothy Parker, who is still resident in EK, and Barbara McInally, who is resident in Bishopbriggs but who served as a sergeant in East Kilbride. I spoke to Dorothy last night just to make sure that I had right the story that she told Christina McKelvie and me that day. Although I said that in the late 1960s policewomen were allowed to stay in post after marriage, she told me that in 1972 she had to ask the chief constable for permission to stay. I can see that Mr Pearson is nodding away, so he is older than we all thought.
Dorothy recalled that women officers had different duties from the men, and there was only one woman on every shift, who was to deal with women and children. Even after she had passed the full driving course, Dorothy was allowed to drive only if a qualified male was in the car. She also told me that women officers were not allowed to wear trousers; I will not go into the stories of what she used to do when she had to chase felons down the street.
Then we got on to the story of Barbara McInally, who was fascinating as well. She really hit against the glass ceiling of the time. She was promoted to sergeant in East Kilbride in the mid-1960s and then went to the CID in Shettleston. She had started out as a typist in the police force in Rutherglen in the 1950s and then moved into the force itself. She told me that she still has her last pay slip from being a typist in the police in Rutherglen, where she got £3 a week. She used to put two shillings a week in the holiday fund to pay for her holidays every year.
When Barbara moved into being a police officer she was on £7 a week, which included a plain clothes allowance. All the women police officers’ uniforms had to be made to measure because there were not enough of them to warrant having off-the-peg uniforms.
From that point, things really moved on. In 1976 police women came to be known as constable, sergeant and so on, rather than WPC or W sergeant. That created a form of equality with male colleagues.
In 1995, Sandra Hood became the first woman in Scotland to hold the rank of chief superintendent. In 2006, Margaret Barr was appointed director of the Scottish Police College at Tulliallan. In 2008, Norma Graham became Scotland’s first female chief constable in Fife and, of course, in 2012, Rose Fitzpatrick was appointed as the first female deputy chief constable of Police Scotland.
Across the UK, there are now more than 40,000 female officers, and almost 40 per cent of Police Scotland recruits this year are women, which is the highest proportion ever. However, I believe that we have to look back to Dorothy Parker, Barbara McInally and all their contemporaries, who fought against the system at the time and followed a vocation. We also have to recognise the diverse policing roles that women now hold and the positive role that women officers have played and continue to play in keeping everyone safe in their communities.
17:12
I am delighted to participate in this evening’s debate marking 100 years of women in policing and I thank Linda Fabiani for bringing it to the chamber.
Over the past 24 hours, the headlines have been dominated by the tragic death on the front line of PC David Phillips in Liverpool. As the Prime Minister said, it serves as a stark reminder that
“there’s no such thing as a safe day if you’re a police officer.”
I take this opportunity to pay tribute to the men and women who put themselves in danger, day in, day out, to keep our communities safe because we are truly indebted to them. I thank them for all that they do.
As we celebrate 100 years of women in policing, I am struck by the fact that Edith Smith, the first ever woman to become a police constable, was sworn in during the first world war. I also note that she was sworn in at Grantham in Lincolnshire—a town not unfamiliar with the achievement of females, as it was of course the town that was to produce Britain’s first female Prime Minister.
However, 1915 reflected dark and desperately unsafe times. It was testament to Edith Smith’s immense strength and bravery that she led the way as the first woman to have policing powers commensurate with those of her male counterparts. That is all the more remarkable as women did not count as proper citizens in the eyes of the law in the early 20th century, as Linda Fabiani pointed out. Without doubt, pioneering people such as Edith Smith have helped change the discourse surrounding women aspiring to the workplace over the past 100 years.
In celebrating Edith Smith’s achievements, we should reflect that opening a path for women in the police force was not necessarily synonymous with championing the rights of women. I am sure that Edith Smith was personally committed to doing that, but the very nature of her specialist duties, to which Linda Fabiani obliquely referred, meant that she was often engaged in the moral regulation of her female peers, such as conducting surveillance on behalf of servicemen with doubts about spousal fidelity.
Edith Smith’s appointment was not a fait accompli for female equality—far from it, in fact. It is worth remembering that women were not admitted to policing on the same pay, terms and conditions as men until the sex discrimination and equal pay acts of the 1970s.
It is positive to learn that today almost 40 per cent of recruits at the Scottish Police College are women. I hope that more women will pursue policing as a career in the future.
Scottish Police Authority data from December 2014 show that women are underrepresented in senior posts across the single force. I do not seek to diminish in any way the achievements to which Linda Fabiani referred. However, I note that women make up 17 per cent of superintendents; 10 per cent of detective superintendents; 24 per cent of chief superintendents; and 13 per cent of detective chief superintendents. We cannot feel complacent about those figures. I am not advocating that women should be promoted on anything other than merit, but the figures raise some questions.
Women are now involved—at least to some extent—in every aspect of Scottish policing, and we must ensure that the environment encourages able female officers to stay so that they can move up the ranks. The survey that was published last week indicated a somewhat disquieting element with regard to officers who want to leave the force in the next three years. The intake of more women recruits will go some way towards redressing the existing gender imbalance in the future, but the long-term impact will be lost if staff leave. There is therefore a huge obligation on the SPA chairman, Andrew Flanagan, and the new chief constable of Police Scotland to be sensitive to the needs of staff and to create a working environment that fosters long-term careers for all officers, regardless of gender.
As Linda Fabiani indicated, and as her motion confirms, women in the police force have a distinguished record of service in Scotland. We need to look at the situation across the board, because we can do better, and we owe it to Edith Smith to try to achieve that aim.
17:16
I thank Linda Fabiani for giving me the opportunity to support her motion for debate this evening. I begin by acknowledging the murder in Merseyside of Dave Phillips, who leaves behind two beautiful daughters, a wife and family, and friends. He made the ultimate sacrifice that can be offered by a police officer in merely performing his duty.
That death comes barely three years after Fiona Bone and Nicola Hughes were murdered in September 2012. Both police officers were mercilessly gunned down as they, too, performed their duties on behalf of the public. For every family and every friend who has suffered personally the impact of a police officer’s death on duty, the distress of this week’s news will once more kick off the impact of their own individual tragedies.
In that light, it is particularly poignant that we are celebrating 100 years of women in the police service across Britain. Much has been delivered by women officers in that time, but much more needs attention in order to ensure that policing in Scotland, as elsewhere in the UK, is capable of enabling and empowering women to play their full part.
In 1970 I arrived at Maitland Street police office in Glasgow to begin policing in the north and east end of the city. My shift comprised entirely men, who were mostly veterans of the war. Many were of Highland extraction, and they were all huge in build and focused on street duties rather than administrative duties. A few women operated in the police station as officers. A couple were attached to the CID, and occasionally I caught sight of a policewoman from headquarters, where—I was told—an entire policewomen department existed, although merely a handful of women were based there. At that time, the department was led by a formidable woman whose reputation went before her, and with whom no one tangled. The department dealt with missing persons, sex crimes involving children and a host of caring needs to which the police responded.
By 1974, women detective constables and—very unusually—women sergeants were becoming more visible in the service. At that point I was transferred to the drugs squad, to be told that I would “neighbour”—which is shorthand in the service for “work alongside”—a woman detective constable. Her name was Brenda Flynn. As a man in a male-dominated culture, working on the streets, I duly felt horrified at the prospect. However, in the coming days, weeks and months I learned how fortunate I was to have a woman as a colleague, and how lucky I was to have a colleague as professional as Brenda Flynn.
The experience was an early lesson to me: it is not the gender of a person that matters; it is their value, commitment and professionalism that prove their worth to the public. In the intervening three decades, I have met a significant number of impressive women who no longer operate specifically as women officers, but as part of the main stream of police officers. The service now relies on women to deliver. Two years ago women represented 37 per cent of the Scottish police service. It could not operate without women in its ranks.
The debate is brief, but I could not finish without saying that women still have much to do to maximise the benefits that they bring, and men in the service have much to do to enable that to occur. In promoted ranks, representation of women falls dramatically from 20 per cent to 9 per cent as we move up through the ranks. As with the armed services, the police service has a chequered history of managing the issues that arise from men and women working together in what was previously seen as a man’s world.
Fiona Bone and Nicola Hughes, along with others, should put an end to the notion that policing is a man’s world. Policing is a complex and challenging environment that needs all the skills that men and women bring to it. I commend Linda Fabiani for raising the issue and I hope that women around the country will take pride in those who represent them in the police service.
17:21
I also thank Linda Fabiani for securing a debate marking 100 years of women in policing. At the time when the first female officer with full arrest powers was appointed in England, across the United Kingdom about 4,000 women were already taking on policing functions as voluntary patrols. The appointment of Edith Smith, however, started a new chapter when a lot of opportunities were opening up to women due to the human cost of the first world war.
I am pleased to note that one of the first women officers in Scotland, Jean Thomas, was from my region, and joined Dundee City Police shortly after Edith Smith was appointed. I am less pleased to note that years later, the chief constable of Dundee was forced to publicly deny that he had a woman working as a constable. Times have certainly changed.
As we know, at the very beginning, women officers were paid less, were required to leave the force after they married and had separate service titles to men, but they were there and were beginning to make a difference. Many things have changed in the relatively short time since then. Today in Scotland we have a female deputy chief constable, in Rose Fitzpatrick. As other members have said, this year’s intake at the Scottish Police College in Tulliallan was nearly 40 per cent women. In September, Laura Collins was named special constable of the year after putting in a phenomenal 1,200 hours of volunteering. Women are now able to do any job within the police service and are treated as equals to their male counterparts in their terms and conditions of employment.
Challenges remain, however. According to figures that were published by the Scottish Police Authority in 2014, only 31 per cent of recruits were women. In a Scottish police staff survey, which was published just last week, 63 per cent of female respondents said that they felt like they are being treated fairly at work, which means that more than a third of the women who responded do not feel that way. We should be concerned about that.
Although I recognise that women hold such diverse roles as firearms officer, counterterrorism officer and investigator, there is still a way to go. The Scottish women’s development forum, an organisation that aims to tackle the gender gap within Police Scotland’s ranks, estimated that in 2014, only 29 per cent of all police officers were women, only 20 per cent of promoted posts were taken up by women, and only 36 per cent of special constables were women. The numbers clearly show that we need to do more to encourage and foster women to take up posts within the police, and to help them to rise through the ranks. That means tackling the biases in the system. Workplace policies and practices need to be reviewed to ensure that the police service is a fair place to work for everyone. As in other sectors, the need for flexible working is particularly important for women officers who have caring responsibilities.
It is also worth recognising the importance of female civilian staff. According to SWDF figures, 62 per cent of that employee group in 2014 were women. The civilian staff bring specialist expertise, allowing police officers to spend more time engaging with their communities. Civilian staff provide an important part of the service and have a crucial function in the operation of our police force.
It is therefore shocking that, according to the figures that were published by the SPA in 2013, a staggering 87 per cent of police service staff who receive salaries that are less than £15,000 per annum are women. In the meantime, between 60 per cent and 70 per cent of staff members receiving £65,000 and over per annum are men. The terms of employment may be equal, but the reality is not yet so.
It is so important that we make the necessary changes so that women feel that they are treated fairly. We need our police force to reflect the society that it works to protect. We need to make sure that we have women police officers who can inspire young girls to want to be involved so that we have not only a rich history but a vibrant future for women in our police force.
17:25
I thank Linda Fabiani for securing the debate in Parliament on this memorable issue.
Every day, our police force in Scotland does a remarkable job in protecting communities. It not only covers an area of more than 30,000 square miles, but last year successfully managed the Commonwealth games and the Ryder cup. It is of great importance that the police force, in doing that job, reflects Scotland’s diverse society. Looking back at its past, that has not always been the case. Traditionally, the police force was a male-dominated institution. Today, I want to recount some of the historic developments that have led to the greater inclusion of women. I also want to talk about how far the police force has come in endorsing as well as incorporating equality and diversity.
As we celebrate 100 years of women in policing, I believe that it is crucial to remember those brave women who set important milestones for future generations. After Edith Smith became the first female officer in the UK, the first two Scottish officers, Emily Miller and Jean Thomas, were appointed by the City of Glasgow Police and Dundee City Police between 1915 and 1918. That certainly marked a remarkable turning point for women.
However, segregation was very common within the police force in terms of distinct tasks, rank structures and even separate offices. Nevertheless, from the late 1960s onwards, several important changes have taken place. Since 1968, policewomen have been able to remain in their posts after marriage and since the 1980s, women have been allowed to wear trousers as part of their uniform. The Equal Pay Act in 1970 established the principle of equal pay for women. Most notably, in 1976, women police ceased to exist as a separate body and were integrated into the general police system.
In recent years, an increasing number of women have assumed leadership positions within the police force. Norma Graham was appointed Scotland’s first female chief constable at Fife Constabulary in 2008. Since 2012, Rose Fitzpatrick has served as deputy chief constable of Police Scotland.
I am delighted to say that Police Scotland is fully committed to the principles of equality and diversity. With the formal establishment of Police Scotland in 2013, the values of integrity, fairness and respect have assumed a key role in the delivery of its services, which aspire to reach high quality, consistency and accessibility in order to promote justice for all.
To monitor how well Police Scotland integrates those values and principles into the organisation’s everyday work, a high-level action plan—“Equality and Diversity in Police Scotland 2013”—was created. That report allows Police Scotland to look forward and enshrines how equality and diversity will influence its services.
Additionally, an Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland working group—the Scottish women’s development forum—was formed. A main part of its remit is to advise Police Scotland, the Scottish Police Authority and the Scottish Government on issues of gender equality in the service. Its membership is open to everyone who seeks to improve the working environment in the police force to enable all staff members to reach their full potential. Each year, the Scottish women’s development forum pays tribute to the input, efforts and achievements of women officers and staff members. The award ceremony highlights the diversity of excellent initiatives, as well as the breadth of roles that are undertaken by women in the police force.
In celebrating the 100th anniversary of women in policing, we can look proudly at recent statistics. In 2014, 29 per cent of police officers were women—an increase of 11 per cent since 2003. That number is predicted to rise in the future, as nearly 40 per cent of all new recruits are women. Twenty per cent of promoted posts were given to women. That shows that there is still room for improvement. However, I believe that those statistics indicate that no rank is now unattainable for women in the police force.
I am confident in saying that those developments show clearly how far the police force has come in transforming the organisation and taking it towards achieving greater equality. It is an honour to speak about our police force and especially about women in policing. I wish all members of Police Scotland and the Scottish Police Authority the best of luck in their future endeavours.
17:30
I, too, congratulate Linda Fabiani on securing the debate. It is notable that the first female officers were appointed during the first world war. It is often the case that, during times of war when men are away, women get opportunities that would not otherwise have been offered to them. We should remember that, when the first women police officers were appointed, we did not even have female suffrage—women did not have the vote. As Alison McInnes said, there had already been women police volunteers and the voluntary women’s patrols in England at the beginning of the war. Interestingly, they were often headed up by suffragettes. That was part of the demonstration of women’s ability to do the same jobs as men and their worthiness of being given the suffrage.
As members have mentioned, Emily Miller joined the City of Glasgow Police in September 1915 and Jean Thomas, the second woman to join the police, joined Dundee City Police in 1918. However, there had apparently previously been a court sister in Aberdeen in 1914. A lot less is known about that lady, but she had many of the same responsibilities as a police officer. By all accounts, she was a very formidable lady—apparently, she weighed something like 18 stone and was quite capable of picking up recalcitrant male offenders and throwing them into the dock if necessary.
As Linda Fabiani said, there was considerable public resistance to the idea of female officers. In addition to the chief constable in Dundee denying that he had a female officer, the town clerk of Stirling around that time said something along the lines of, “We have no need of them and we do not want them.” People did not want women officers out there. However, things are much better 100 years on. We celebrated 100 years of women in policing in June, and women now comprise about a third of the force.
In Dumfries and Galloway, there were two events to celebrate the centenary—one in Port Rodie in Stranraer and the other in Cornwall Mount in Dumfries. As it happened, on 26 June, I had a meeting arranged with the V division commander, Mike Leslie. When I arrived at Cornwall Mount, Mike told me that I would be interested in the exhibition that was on, and he asked Sergeant Nicola Robison, who had organised the exhibition, to show me round it. It was absolutely fascinating, particularly as I was shown round by a serving police officer and spoke to other police officers. There was a lot of memorabilia from the legacy Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary museum, with photographs showing women police officers in knee-length skirts. When I observed those, I thought how difficult it must have been to undertake some of the duties of a police officer while wearing such a skirt.
There was also a photograph purporting to be of the court sister in Aberdeen—the one who used to hurl people into the dock. She was sitting in a long dress and smoking a clay pipe. I have to say that I certainly would not cross her if I met her anywhere near a court. There was an array of equipment, some of which I picked up and found to be pretty heavy. People have to pretty fit to be a police officer. They no longer have to be tall—someone my height could probably be a police officer nowadays—but they have to be fit as well as very courageous. The exhibition was well attended. One of the purposes was to allow former female police officers to come back and meet their colleagues and have a chat about their time in the force.
As members have said, we must not forget that women are underrepresented, particularly at senior levels. It is important that role models of women police officers, particularly senior women police officers, are promoted. Of course, the post of chief constable of Police Scotland is up for filling. I have suggested to Assistant Chief Constable Kate Thomson, who comes from Dumfries and Galloway, that she should put her hat in the ring. She did not say that she would not, so I am hopeful that she will apply.
I wonder how many little girls in the early stages of life say that they would like to be a police officer. Obviously, people say that later on in life, but I would like to see the sort of gender equality that would allow young girls, as much as young boys, to aspire to be a police officer.
17:35
I start by paying tribute to all our police officers, who provide a sterling service to each and every one of us and our communities day in and day out. In that regard, I, too, on behalf of all my colleagues, offer sincere condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of PC David Phillips.
I thank Linda Fabiani for securing this debate on the important milestone of 100 years of women in policing, and I thank all members for their interesting contributions. I had the privilege of speaking at a passing-out parade at the Scottish Police College in Tulliallan in June, at which we celebrated 100 years of women in policing. I am also aware that each of the 14 divisions in Police Scotland have held local events to celebrate this landmark year, and we heard about the successful event that was held in East Kilbride, in Linda Fabiani’s constituency, in June.
The history of women in policing shows that the integration of women into all aspects of the profession has taken many years, as many members have highlighted. New recruits to Police Scotland enter a completely different service to their volunteer counterparts 100 years ago, but we should not forget that it was not that long ago—in fact, it was the 1980s—when female officers were still restricted to wearing skirts and carrying handbags. Progress has been slow and not without obstacles.
A point that was not mentioned tonight is the fact that, until 1937, female police officers were barred from taking fingerprints. That struck me as odd, as did the curious case of the chief constable in Dundee in 1922 denying the very existence of his female constable. Why was that? We need more information about that. Of course, we heard from Elaine Murray that it was not just Dundee, and that Stirling was at it, too. I do not know what was going on there, but by the time that Graeme Pearson started his service in 1970—in Glasgow, I believe—we had moved on some 48 years and were at least recognising the role of women police officers, albeit there were a number of significant restrictions on what they could do.
I know that Police Scotland fully supports diversity in its workforce and aims to embed equality and diversity into every aspect of the service, allowing all female officers to have the same opportunity to develop and progress in the service. As a result, thankfully, women now play a pivotal role in all aspects of policing, albeit that more needs to be done. That progress has been largely due to women challenging the status quo, and we should pay tribute to the female officers who have taken personal and professional risks to stand up for their rights, and the rights of other women—a point that was referenced by Annabel Goldie and David Torrance.
Over the past century, women have increasingly taken on the range of responsibilities and demands of policing and have sought greater access to specialist roles and the freedom to seek promotion to the highest ranks. We should recognise that the freedoms that female officers enjoy today have been hard won, whether through sheer determination and persistence or through court challenges.
Police Scotland recognises that, to gain the full potential from new recruits and to deliver a service that truly reflects the diverse communities that it serves, it must have accessible recruitment options and working practices that, as Alison McInnes highlighted, allow flexible working and access to all aspects of its work. In that regard, there are now three women in the Police Scotland executive team, and women have the opportunity to join any of the specialist units
At the parade that I attended in June, 37 per cent of the new recruits were female, and there are currently around 5,150 female officers in Police Scotland. That figure represents approximately 29 per cent of serving officers. Police Scotland also recognises the challenges that it faces within our communities, but its commitment to mainstreaming equality matches the Scottish Government’s commitment to work within our powers to help women fulfil their potential in the labour market.
In the past year, female employment in general has reached record levels in Scotland. It is now the second highest in the European Union, but we are not complacent. We know that there is much work to be done to tackle occupational segregation and the continuing pay gap. We are committed to tackling inequality in all its shapes and forms in Scotland. Harnessing the potential of everyone in society makes us not only stronger but a much more successful society, so the Government will continue to take action to ensure that more women are able to make informed choices about careers and pursue those careers successfully throughout their working lives.
I acknowledge in particular the efforts of Dorothy Parker and Barbara McInally, one of whom is a constituent of Ms Fabiani’s. I also acknowledge the stories that they were able to tell of their time in the force and the actions that they had to take to ensure that their progression in the force happened. Although their senior officers did not deny their existence, they still had to take much action to make their way in the force. I commend them for the service that they provided to our communities.
I recognise the enormous contribution that women have made in policing over the past 100 years. I again thank Linda Fabiani for ensuring that the Parliament duly recognises that milestone. I have no doubt that, in the years ahead, women will continue to make a powerful contribution to Scotland’s policing and many more women will progress to the very top of Police Scotland—where they should be, in my opinion as Minister for Youth and Women’s Employment.
Meeting closed at 17:41.Previous
Decision Time