The Conduct of Charity Street Workers in Scotland's Great Cities

That the Parliament acknowledges that the majority of charity street workers conduct themselves in a courteous and dignified manner; believes that their work helps to raise awareness of the charities that they represent to the benefit of those in need; is of the view, however, that a significant minority of charity street workers subject citizens in Scotland’s cities to undue pressure to donate to charity; considers that a number of the methods employed by charity street workers, including what might be seen as harassment and blocking peoples’ paths, are discourteous; deems this behaviour to be completely unacceptable; sees this as an intrusion on one’s right to walk down a street freely; believes that people should be encouraged to give to charity but should not be harassed into donating; believes that there is a danger that people will associate all charities with such methods and that this could have a detrimental impact on the sector with fewer people making contributions, and acknowledges that the charity sector at large has done much for those in need, but accepts that regulations are required to bring an end to what it considers the discourteous methods employed by a significant minority of charity street workers and to protect the right of the individual to walk a street freely without harassment.