CONCERN that new legal advice to Police Scotland about road closures could affect Orange Order parades might have been muted among many Scots. But a new and more worrying dimension is added with the realisation that this advice could also affect smaller demonstrations by the likes of community groups, parents or local workers.

At issue is the power of the police to close roads. Previously, this was on an ad-hoc basis with different councils but the new advice prompts a more unilateral, across-the-board approach. It warns Police Scotland that, except in emergencies, its officers cannot divert or halt traffic without a court order. The cost falls on the local authority, and there’s a likelihood of it being passed on partly to march organisers.

Larger organisations might be able to withstand this but what if it puts protest out of the price range of small community groups? Can we put a price on democratic rights? It isn’t even clear how it helps. Was the system broken before the need for this added legal hurdle and associated costs?

The situation puts both councils and Police Scotland in an invidious position and the advice that put them there must be put under the widest scrutiny. Protests and parades exist to be seen (hence the attraction of busy streets), and full exposure of the legal rules governing them is now also required