By Chris Green
John Swinney has announced a series of measures to clamp down on antisocial behaviour in his Programme for Government (PfG), as he confirmed that the ban on drinking alcohol on trains is to be lifted.
The First Minister set out his legislative plans for the next 12 months in a statement at Holyrood, firing the starting gun on the 2026 Holyrood election in the process.
The Programme for Government is usually published in September, but Swinney brought it forward to give his government a year of delivery time before voters head to the polls.
He did not mention ‘police’ or ‘justice’ in his statement to MSPs, instead focusing mainly on growing the economy and improving the NHS by cutting waiting times.
However, the document itself had a substantial section on ‘ensuring a safer Scotland’, which focused on a clampdown on antisocial behaviour.
It confirmed earlier reports that under 22s will have their free bus passes suspended “on a temporary and potentially permanent basis” if they engage in such behaviour.
1919 has previously reported how more than 2,000 incidents of antisocial behaviour took place on board Edinburgh’s Lothian Buses in 2023/24, a 60 per cent rise on the previous year.
This led an expert advisory group to urge ministers to consider deploying ‘bus wardens’ on the transport network to deter such incidents.
The PfG document said “detailed work” on the timescale for bringing in bus pass suspensions was underway, adding that a “behaviour code” would also be developed.
It also said ScotRail would deploy more ‘travel safe’ teams on the rail network, but that the alcohol ban which has been in place since the Covid pandemic would be lifted.
The document said this was being done in response to concerns from train staff that the ban was “counterproductive and ineffective”. It will be replaced by new regulations focusing any restrictions on particular times and locations.
“The position of ScotRail is we cannot in fact enforce the [alcohol] ban as it is not a matter of law, our staff cannot enforce it”
ScotRail managing director Joanne Maguire
ScotRail boss Joanne Maguire told MSPs in April that her staff were unable to intervene if people flouted the ban, and that there was no evidence it had any impact on behaviour.
“The position of ScotRail is we cannot in fact enforce the ban as it is not a matter of law, our staff cannot enforce it. Our position is if staff are on a train, they cannot intervene and ask people not to drink,” she said.
“There is no statistical link in terms of alcohol consumption and antisocial behaviour on the train, but it does remain a policy matter for Scottish Government as to whether or not the ban remains in place.”
Other justice-related announcements in the PfG included a consultation on revising legislation on Football Banning Orders, so they can be applied in response to the use of flares and other pyrotechnics.
To address the rising problem of retail crime, ministers will support the development of Police Scotland’s retail crime action plan, as well as the creation of a retail crime task force.
It also committed to a “comprehensive assessment” of the law in relation to non-fatal strangulation, in response to calls that it should be made a standalone offence.
On prisons, the PfG ministers would look into the feasibility of new “specialist models of imprisonment” for groups such as older and younger people.
It also said there would be a pilot of ‘employment advisory boards’ to better connect people in custody to wraparound support from a variety of services prior to release.