Council Leader Cammy Day has responded to the reports of violence and disorder which took place across the Capital yesterday evening (Thursday October 31).
Council Leader Cammy Day said:
I was shocked and saddened to hear about the violence and disorder instigated by small minority of mindless thugs last night – and desperately hope we don’t see a repeat over the weekend.
It’s incomprehensible to me that anyone would choose to cause such disruption, fear and alarm in our communities – particularly with buses and police vehicles being deliberately targeted. Sadly, I fear it’s only a matter of time until someone is more seriously hurt or worse.I visited the Lothian bus depot earlier today to speak with some of the drivers and they were clearly shaken by what had happened and, quite understandably, concerned for their safety. Nobody should face violence at work, and they have our full support.
I want to reassure our communities that we’re continuing to work closely with Police Scotland, particularly in the run up to Bonfire Night, and I chaired a multi-agency meeting first thing this morning to discuss last night’s events and what additional steps we can take.
The Chief Superintendent confirmed that they’ve committed significant additional resources between now and 5 November and have their best detectives working on bringing the perpetrators to justice. I would appeal to anyone with information to contact the police or Crimestoppers as soon as possible.
We need our communities’ support in putting an end to this – but we also need the UK and Scottish Governments to back our calls for a complete ban on the public sale of fireworks and the justice system to hand down tougher penalties for the those found guilty of committing these despicable crimes.