This consultation mirrors voluntary compliance with set out guidelines that have been in use in England for some time. Interestingly the English guidelines make it plain that non- compliance by coach operators will result in legislation being introduced to make mandatory rules. It may seem logical for the Government to extend these rules northwards, but apart from less than a handful of clubs, most football clubs in Scotland have single digit numbers of supporters buses. My first reaction was that this smacks of dog whistle politics at an election time, cheap for the Government, although I doubt that there will be any increase in police resources to operate the scheme. I do wonder if someone thought it a logical extension of what applies in England, without considering whether or not there is a problem with this in Scottish football.
I hope that the SPFL provides a robust reply, with the average number of busses per club, to demonstrate how stupid this idea is, and also makes it plain that at a stroke it will kill away support at Scottish matches, and will seriously affect small coach operators.