While Police Scotland has been adamant that the tactic protects children and young people, and prevents more serious crime, the statistics simply do not bear this out. What they say is that children and young people have been targeted disproportionately by "consensual" stop and search, which has had a negative impact on their perceptions of the police. The announcement the practice would come to an end came after an independent advisory group reported their findings to the Cabinet Secretary for Justice.
The group, of which my own office was part, was chaired by QC John Scott and was tasked with considering whether Police Scotland should operate a presumption against consensual stop and search or whether the practice should end altogether. It was also tasked with developing a draft code of practice to underpin the use of this practice in Scotland.
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