That is confusing.

We hear from police officers that they are stressed and need more numbers. They obviously feel undervalued. At the moment, salary negotiations are going on for them. Has that process been accounted for in the budget? Do our police officers deserve a better offer than the one that is on the table?

I have one final question. In your evidence to the committee last year, you mentioned your concerns about funding in relation to the use of new technologies, particularly body-worn cameras, for Police Scotland.

Another year has passed, and they have still not been rolled out. How disappointed are you about the current situation, and do you have confidence that it will be resolved soon?

Are you confident that it will be rolled out within a year?

On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I would have voted yes.

Needless appearances at court are not just inefficient; they put a strain on police officers, with many being forced to return from holiday or to abandon rest days, often just to be told that the case is not going ahead. Although the current pilot scheme has been welcomed by many, Police Scotland wants further improvements, and the Scottish Police Federation has described the changes as a “drop in the ocean”. Can the cabinet secretary offer reassurances to officers that the model will be widened and improved, so that they will be less likely to face disruption in the future?

I thank Alex Cole-Hamilton for bringing a debate on this important topic to the chamber.

The motion highlights the devastating impact of antisocial behaviour in one small part of Scotland, but—as we all know—it is anything but a local matter. There is not a member in the chamber who does not hear regularly from their constituents about just how disruptive, and how utterly miserable an experience for them, antisocial behaviour is.

It is apt that we are having the debate the week after yet more shameful scenes unfolded across the country in relation to fireworks disorder. Every year, the police and other emergency services know that the problems of bonfire night are coming and, every year, they appear to be powerless to do anything about it. While those brave men and women risk their lives on the front line, people are too scared to leave their own homes and are terrified for the wellbeing of their children and pets. It is a grim existence for far too many, and it falls to the decision makers in Parliament to do something about it.

First, let us consider the first line of defence: Scotland’s front-line policemen and policewomen. In recent years, their resources have been stripped to the bone. In terms of feet on the ground, the numbers are at their lowest since the Scottish National Party came to power, which is an astonishing abandonment of the hard-fought commitment back in 2007 to put 1,000 extra officers on our streets.

Those front-line staff are also constantly let down when it comes to equipment. Body-worn cameras have still not been rolled out—that pledge is now years behind schedule. They wonder—rightly—why train workers and supermarket staff can get body cams, but they cannot. There are other challenges, too, from ludicrous demands being placed on their time to high levels of sickness absence. With the latest round of pay negotiations, it is no wonder they are at their wits’ end.

What happens when the police are able to apprehend, arrest and charge the perpetrators of antisocial behaviour? They are met by a justice system that is too weak and which offers little in the way of a deterrent. Criminals know that they can commit repeated offences and be back out in no time, to engage in similar behaviour. There is no fear of, or respect for, the law.

A significant proportion of antisocial behaviour is committed by young people, yet the Scottish Government does not think that those under 25 should be held properly to account for their actions. Sentencing guidelines mean that they are handled with kid gloves, because ministers do not believe that their brains have fully developed. However, communities know that if someone is old enough to wreck lives, ruin communities and put lives at risk without remorse, they are old enough to feel the consequences.

Mr Cole-Hamilton’s motion talks about

“whether legislation can be tightened”

to deal with all this. To begin with, one suggestion would be to review the free bus pass scheme for those under 22. Anyone who has used a bus anywhere in the country knows exactly how successful that policy has been, but it has successfully enabled troublemakers to terrorise drivers and passengers and travel from one place to another—on the taxpayer—with the sole motive of violence. At the very least, the pass should be instantly revoked for anyone who is found to be stirring trouble on board or travelling with bad intentions.

So many of the problems on Scotland’s streets can be traced back to a justice system that is not taken seriously by the very people in whom it is meant to spark fear. Whether that is down to resourcing, political dogma or basic incompetence, something needs to change. Our communities need that now, more than ever.

I have specific questions on HMP Kilmarnock, which Teresa Medhurst mentioned in her opening remarks. It came back under SPS control on 17 March this year. What was the budgetary impact of that move? Will there be any further impacts going forward and, if there are, do you expect those to be covered by the Scottish Government?

You put in for £3.1 million of increased costs. Is that in staffing alone?

You mentioned that it is starting to be rolled out in other places, too. Will you tell us more about the plans for rolling out the pilot in courts across the country? Is it likely that it will ultimately lead to resource savings?