By Bill Heaney
Scottish Liberal Democrat justice spokesperson Liam McArthur MSP has today urged SNP ministers to get serious over the funding challenges facing policing as new figures reveal that police officer numbers are now at their lowest level since the second quarter of 2008.
The Scottish Government’s Police Officer Quarterly Strength Statistics, published today, show that:
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As of 31st December 2023, there were 16,363 full-time equivalent (FTE) police officers. This is the lowest number of officers since the second quarter of 2008.
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Officer numbers dropped by 250 (1.5%) in the three months from September 2023.
In November, the Scottish Police Federation stated that the service had been “asset stripped and basically used as a cash cow.”
Mr McArthur said: “The SNP have locked policing budgets in a chokehold for years, causing officer numbers to plummet to a record low and putting communities at greater risk.
“Officers feel unsupported, overwhelmed and stretched dangerously thin. These pressures simply heighten the possibility of an exodus of experienced and skilled people from the service.
“With policing bodies now warning of a public safety crisis, it’s time for the Scottish Government to listen. Ministers must finally commit to resourcing the service properly and place the welfare of officers and staff at the centre of decisions about the future.”
Commenting on Police Officer Quarterly Strength Statistics Scottish Labour Justice spokesperson Pauline McNeill said “Years of brutal cuts by the SNP have left Police Scotland overstretched and put community safety at risk.
“Police have been sounding the alarm that things could get even worse as the SNP government continues to pile pressure on frontline services.
“The SNP must rule out any more dangerous cuts of officer numbers and ensure that the police have the resources they need to keep people safe.”
