Question reference: S5W-31292
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
- Date lodged: 19 August 2020
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Current status: Answered by Ash Denham on 26 August 2020
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had regarding the vandalism of war memorials, and whether it is considering introducing a statutory aggravation.
Answer
The Scottish Government condemns all acts of vandalism. Vandalism is a crime regardless of the motivations for it, or the targets the vandalism is aimed at. Protection of monuments is a matter for Police Scotland and the Scottish Government fully supports them to take appropriate action to both ensure that statues are protected and that those involved in vandalism are brought to justice. There is already legislation in place to deal with the vandalism and desecration of statutes and memorials, including war memorials, and the Scottish Government has no plans to introduce new legislation specifically relating to the vandalism of war memorials at this time.