Fresh attempt to cut number of city marches

Senior reporter

Thursday 2 August 2012

THE number of marches in Glasgow has fallen over the past two years, and Scotland's largest local authority is preparing for talks with ministers as it attempts to further reduce and restrict parades.

SMALLER NUMBERS: There were 27% fewer parades in Glasgow in 2011/2012. Picture: Stewart Attwood

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GERRY BRAIDEN

Glasgow City Council has launched a consultation on a further overhaul of its policy on processions, with bodies ranging from shopping centres and bus companies to the Scottish Government, Orange Order and Gay Pride asked to contribute.

However, while ministers say they are happy to work with local authorities over parading, the Government will not contribute to Glasgow's consultation New analysis of parade figures revealed the number fell from 497 in 2009/2010 to 362 in 2011/2012, a decline of 27%, which consultation documents put down to dialogue between council officers, the police and the main procession organisers.On top of driving down parade numbers, the council is seeking legislation that would curtail the number of parades through the city centre and rule out George Square as an assembly and dispersal point.It wants more static protests, high risk processions confined to parks and is seeking to recover costs for traffic management, clear-up and toilet provision.There would be no change to the ban on playing music outside places of worship. However, a curfew on music before 9am and after 6pm will be more flexible.It also warns of a spike in unauthorised events and processions organised on social media such as Facebook and Twitter.It all comes months after the council's leader told the Orange Order at a pre-election hustings the city's parades' policy was wrong, fuelling speculation of bridge-building between Labour and the organisation. However, council sources say the proposals are "building on, not walking away from" its current policy.Planned talks with the Government also come after Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill suggested charging organisers for police resources, while two leading police officers also joined calls for more usage of public parks for processions.Under existing legislation, councils do not have wide powers to restrict or prohibit public processions or to take into consideration the views of organisers when administering them.In how it plans to go forward with city centre parades, the council acknowledges it has overstated its own powers, which one source described as more aspirational than legally solid.It adds it wants the "cumulative impact of multiple parades on defined geographical areas" taken into consideration but is powerless to do so, adding discussions with the Scottish Government may be required.Council leader Gordon Matheson said: "We developed a new code of conduct for Glasgow as national guidance had not kept pace with the challenges we face in managing public processions."That was a significant step forward in ensuring marches are handled in a sustainable and transparent way, but we have to be realistic and take a look at where people feel the policy is working and where it can be improved. We want to see the number of processions reduced, which is happening, but we also need to limit their impact on the day-to-day life of the city, which is a greater challenge."A Scottish Government spokesman said: "Councils, in consultation with the local chief constable, are best placed to decide whether events should go ahead, and whether any restrictions should be placed on them."

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Fresh attempt to cut number of city marches

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