A new mental health emergency service could be set up to ease pressure on police officers, Anas Sarwar said today at a campaign event.
The Scottish Labour Party leader was joined by fellow candidates at Glasgow Green today, where he explained his plans to support community policing if he were to become first minister.
Firstly, a named cop would be added to each council ward, 23 in Glasgow, focusing on building local relationships and preventing crime.
Secondly, a dedicated, government-funded mental health emergency service would be set up, specifically dealing with crises such as reports of suicide.
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The 43-year-old said: “I want our police officers back where they belong, on the streets, supporting communities and fighting crime.
“Far too many of our police officers, after 20 years of SNP government, are stuck in courtrooms not giving evidence or they are having to respond to mental health calls.
“That’s why we will set up a mental health emergency service to make sure patients get the appropriate care they need and we will return police officers to our streets, with a named officer for every community across our great country, so we can fight crime, have greater communities and a safer Scotland.”
He continued to say the current system sees police officers responding to mental health calls, taking away vital resources from other police matters.
Instead, under a Labour government, a paramedic or trained mental health nurse would answer to these alerts.
Mr Sarwar stated: “That’s really unfair and unsafe for the patient but it’s also not fair on our police officers, who are already overstretched and too many communities feel unsafe.
“So, we will have a new mental health emergency service, [...] there will be triage done on site for each individual patient and they will be signposted appropriately, perhaps even going to a mental health A&E, rather than an already-overcrowded A&E, existing all across the country.
“This is an appropriate service that supports those patients, given the mental health issues that many people face in this country, sadly."
The party leader said the community policing model is "fundamentally broken".
Anas Sarwar is the Labour candidate for Cathcart and Pollok in the upcoming Scottish Parliament Elections 2026, held on Thursday, May 7.
If you are struggling with your mental health, please contact the Samaritans for free, 24/7, on 116 123.
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