Police are introducing a temporary dispersal zone in Glasgow city centre from Friday, March 20, as part of ongoing work to address antisocial behaviour and crime. The zone will cover an area bounded by St Vincent Place, Glassford Street and Stockwell Street, to the far side of the riverbank, and York Street and West Campbell Street. Glasgow Central Station, St Enoch Square, and Union Street all fall within it.
The zone will allow officers to direct groups of two or more people to leave the area if their behaviour is affecting the safety and wellbeing of others. Those directed to leave will not be permitted to return for 24 hours.
Superintendent Jackie Dunbar said: “We have listened to concerns from members of the public and local businesses about antisocial behaviour and disorder. The vast majority of people who visit the city centre do so responsibly without causing any issues. This measure is about ensuring we can deal proportionately with those whose behaviour impacts others.”
The move comes alongside the reinstatement of 24-hour CCTV monitoring in the city centre, after round the clock coverage was cut in 2023 when the council faced a budget shortfall of nearly £50 million. Data obtained by the Glasgow Times revealed that police were called to the “four corners” junction, where Union Street, Jamaica Street, and Argyle Street meet, nearly 7,000 times in the past three years.
Seven thousand call-outs to a single junction in three years is a statistic that rather speaks for itself. The dispersal zone is a blunt instrument, but when you are dealing with persistent, concentrated disorder, sometimes blunt instruments are what you have. Whether it actually changes behaviour or simply moves it elsewhere remains the question these measures never quite answer.