Politics: Police action tackling anti-social behaviour in community
A few weeks ago, I wrote to Police Scotland’s North Aberdeenshire Area Commander after a number of constituents got in touch regarding anti-social behaviour in Ellon, writes MSP Gillian Martin.
There had been reports of incidents involving graffiti, vandalism and intimidating behaviour.
Constituents had spoken of regular incidents on the cycle track in Gordon Park in Ellon as well, and there were fears that youngsters were travelling from other settlements to the town with disruption in mind.
Residents should not have to fear where they go in the vicinity of their own homes because of disruption being caused by youngsters which is disruptive and intimidating, and so I asked Police Scotland what action was being taken to address residents’ concerns and prevent this type of behaviour.
I am pleased to say that I received a very detailed response from the local Area Commander Chief Inspector Steven McDonald.
The Chief Inspector said while a number of related offences are being investigated, additional patrols have been deployed over the last three weekends.
Police have been engaging with young people as well as carrying out searches for drugs and alcohol.
I know officers have been working hard on this issue and I would like to thank the Chief Inspector and his team for their help.
I will also be meeting with the Chief Inspector for an update on policing in the constituency.
Last week, I popped along to meet Gary and Michelle Bruce who run Aberdeenshire Sheepdogs at their farm based at Meikle.
I would like to thank them both for having me along to meet them and hear about their sheepdog demonstration venture which showcases the skills of shepherd and their collies to visitors to the area.
They are agri-tourism in action! On top of full-time work, the couple run their own business with a flock of around 700 commercial breeding ewes.
Finally, organisations across the north-east, including community, cultural and education groups, will be able to bid for support from a fund aimed at engaging people in tackling the climate emergency.
The £250,000 Climate Engagement Fund will support activities such as climate festivals, skills workshops, art exhibitions and youth development programmes – all aimed at increasing people’s understanding of climate change and encouraging climate action.
The annual fund has already supported eight projects with funding totalling £550,000.
The north-east is fully committed to meeting our target of net zero emissions by 2045 and, as part of this, it is important that people understand the nature and the scale of the climate emergency, the actions they can take to help and the support available to them to do so.
By supporting grassroots action, the Climate Engagement Fund will help enable individuals and communities to directly contribute to tackling climate change.