Glasgow councillor urges colleagues to join evening patrols after rise in violence against women

# What happened Councillor Elaine McDougal has urged Glasgow councillors to join Police Scotland on evening walks through the city centre to experience the safety issues women and girls face. Her call follows Scottish Police Authority figures showing a 7.6% rise in violence against women and girls in 2025–26 and a 12.2% rise in crimes involving a domestic element.

# The proposals she sets out McDougal outlines four concrete actions for councillors and partners:

• Create a city-centre task force jointly led by the council and Police Scotland, with youth services, social work, housing, drug and alcohol services, transport providers and local businesses involved. The task force should publish clear targets and regular, publicly reported results: number of operations, arrests and interventions, outcomes for vulnerable people and actions on repeat offenders.

• Increase visible policing at times and in places where people feel most at risk. She says short-term dispersal operations and arrests are useful but must be part of a sustained approach to recurring problems.

• Develop a specific plan to prevent young people being drawn into hotspot areas by providing safe spaces, youth workers and evening/weekend diversionary activities rather than expecting them to find alternatives themselves.

• Use the visitor levy strategically so additional tourist income helps make the city centre safer and cleaner — funding public-space improvements, youth provision and community safety initiatives.

# Why she is pushing for first-hand experience

Her point is practical: first impressions matter for visitors, but more importantly the daily users of the city centre — residents, workers, families and young people — should be able to move around without intimidation or fear.

# How she links responsibility and coordination McDougal emphasises that Police Scotland cannot resolve this on its own and that the council alone cannot either. She calls for coordinated responsibility, measurable action and regular public reporting to hold agencies to account.

She also rejects the idea that persistent disorder is an acceptable part of city-centre life, urging a higher standard of public safety and services.

# Where this sits in recent council activity The call to join night-time patrols and to tackle city-centre safety follows other local motions and actions addressing women's safety, lane cleaning and community measures. Labour councillors have taken part in night-time patrols with police, and motions have been tabled at full council on related issues.

If taken forward, McDougal's proposals would combine enforcement, prevention and investment in services aimed at both reducing immediate risk and addressing drivers that bring people into vulnerable situations.