A league table Scotland does not want to top

IT WOULD normally be a source of pride for Scotland to be close to the top of a set of international league tables but we should not boast about our place in a new study of criminality in Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries.

According to the Civitas think tank Scotland's murder rate is fifth in the OECD with only Mexico, the US, Turkey and Korea having higher rates. We also have the sixth highest rate of major assaults.

Civitas also gave each country a "punitivity rating" which showed that on average the Scottish justice system sent less people to prison than other countries.

What are we to make of such disturbing figures? First, the picture painted of Scotland is a confusing one with a high rate of violence but a comparatively lower rate of imprisonment. It may be hoped that those committing the serious crimes are being jailed.

Second, much of the violent crime, which gives us the dubious league table honour, is due to young men under the influence of alcohol. As we have argued before, tackling that problem will require a societal change, not a simplistic move to increase the price of alcohol in shops and supermarkets.