500 cops a day cover T in the Park festival
A new report has revealed 500 police officers had to be drafted in to cover this year’s T in the Park festival at Strathallan Castle EVERY DAY.
The report, which is due to be considered by councillors tomorrow, shows this was 480 more officers than was needed to cover the Rewind Festival at Scone Palace. It says just 20 officers were needed to cover that event, which attracted 30,000 visitors, and only seven people there were reported for offences.
The total number of offences committed at T in the Park, which attracted 100,000 visitors, was 499, up from 466 last year.
Tomorrow’s paper, which was prepared by local chief superintendent Paul Anderson, states that Scotland’s largest music festival “had a significant impact on police resources across Scotland.”
It goes on to reveal there was a large rise in the number of people caught carrying drugs at the festival held near Auchterarder this year compared to last year.
Figures compiled by Police Scotland show there were 362 people caught in possession of drugs at Strathallan this year, up from 278 in 2015.
In addition four people were charged for being concerned in the supply of drugs and 16 more were charged for possessing drugs with intent to supply - 14 more than were charged with the same in 2015.
Elsewhere it appears there were fewer violent crimes committed at T in the Park this year, with just one robbery, one assault to severe injury, one serious assault and one injury because of reckless conduct being recorded.
There were six serious assaults reported in 2015 along with one assault to severe injury. This year’s festival also saw a drop in the number of people caught carrying weapons, with just one person being found with a weapon compared with six the previous year.
The paper will be scrutinised by the council’s community safety committee tomorrow. Officers at T in the Park