Soldiers at key sites to free up armed police in terror response, MSPs told
Scotland's First Minister said military personnel would secure 12 sites north of the border under Operation Temperer
Last updated 24th May 2017
Troops will be deployed at Ministry of Defence and civil nuclear sites across Scotland to free up armed officers in the wake of the Manchester terror attack, Nicola Sturgeon has confirmed.
Scotland's First Minister said military personnel would secure 12 sites north of the border under Operation Temperer, which is being enacted after security experts warned the UK Government that another terrorist attack could be imminent.
Ms Sturgeon stressed “no specific threat to Scotland has been identified” and added that soldiers were not expected to be deployed on the streets of Scotland.
A meeting of the Scottish Government's resilience committee was held in the early hours of Wednesday after confirmation the UK's terror threat level had been raised to critical.
Updating MSPs at Holyrood on the implications of the move and Operation Temperer, the First Minister said: “What this means in Scotland is that military personnel will be used at civil nuclear and Ministry of Defence sites.
“There are a total of 12 such sites in Scotland, nine Ministry of Defence and three civil nuclear sites.
“These sites, which are not accessible to the general public, will be secured by the military as of today.
“The presence of military personnel at sites of this nature both in Scotland and across the UK will free up the armed police who are normally on duty there and these armed police will create a contingency resource which can be deployed across the UK.”
Ms Sturgeon said any decision to use that resource north of the border would be taken by Police Scotland but there were currently no plans to do so.
She added that the single force has about 600 trained firearms officers and the number of armed response vehicles on patrol had been doubled since the attack at the Manchester Arena on Monday which killed 22 and injured dozens.
Ms Sturgeon said members of the public were likely to see more armed police on streets than usual, particularly at transport hubs and city centres.
She added: “We do not currently envisage that military personnel will be deployed on the streets in Scotland or in other public locations.
“However, as with all operational matters, this will be kept under review by the Chief Constable.”
Ms Sturgeon said the appearance of more armed police on the streets was in response to “a specific response to the increased threat level” and should not be seen as “a more general or long-term shift in Scotland to having armed police on regular patrol”.
Police are also completing a review of every upcoming public event, including the Scottish Cup Final, the visit to Scotland of former US president Obama, the Edinburgh Marathon and the Lisbon Lions memorial event in Glasgow.
Guidance has been issued to organisers of large events across the country and while additional safety measures would be in place, the aim was to “allow public events to continue as far as possible as normal”.
The First Minister said: “This is clearly a very anxious time but there is no need to be alarmed.
“Many of the steps that are being taken now are precautionary and I repeat there is no intelligence of a specific threat to Scotland.
“However, I do ask the public to be vigilant and to report any concerns or suspicions that they may have to the police.”
The search is continuing for a Barra schoolgirl who remains missing following the attack.
Eilidh MacLeod, 14, remains unaccounted for but her friend Laura MacIntyre, 15, is said to be in a “serious condition” in a Manchester hospital.
Ms Sturgeon confirmed family liaison officers were in Manchester providing support to the families of both girls.
“Their families have requested privacy at this extremely difficult time and for that reason I do not intend to go into further detail today.
“I simply want to assure parliament that as much support as possible is being and will continue to be provided to them at this unimaginably difficult time.
“I know also that we will all want them to know that they are very much in our thoughts.
“More widely, we know that in total seven people have now presented at hospitals in Scotland, however I am pleased to report that all have since been discharged from hospital.”
Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson said: “We should be vigilant, we should be patient as access to certain events and locations take longer, but what we shouldn't be is fearful, nor should we be cowed.
“As we face down the current threat, I know that the sight of armed police officers and service personnel at key locations may be unsettling but there can be no doubt that the response is necessary.”
Lib Dem leader Willie Rennie agreed, stating he believed the balance had been struck on keeping people safe without creating a “climate of fear”.
He said: “I have complete confidence in the painstaking and intelligent work being carried out by the security services and the recommendations they have made.”
Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale asked Ms Sturgeon if there was any additional reassurance for the public “going about their everyday lives” and if there are practical steps people can take to support the police.
The First Minister said: “The most obvious visible difference will be more armed officers on the streets ... I think there will be a lot of people in Scotland who do not normally see armed police who will see armed police while this threat level is in place.”
She added:”The public have a such a key role to play here ... my message to the public is to be vigilant, anything at all that is of concern or creates suspicion, make sure that is reported to the police.”
Ms Sturgeon was pressed on whether events such as the visit of president Obama would be cancelled.
She said: “I am not anticipating anything other than that event will go ahead, but I want to be very clear the police are undertaking a process here of reviewing all of these events which will lead to them making decisions.”