END OF THE BOBBY ON THE BEAT

Police ‘at breaking point’ and more face the axe

BEAT bobbies have vanished from parts of Scotland because the number available for frontline duties has been slashed by up to a half, rankand-file officers warn.

Calum steele, general secretary of the scottish Police Federation, admitted the service is at ‘breaking point’ with too many officers being moved from street patrols to admin and other roles, causing ‘immense frustration’.

He also warned that in some areas, the public are no longer promptly reporting crime because confidence in the ability of the police to respond has plummeted.

the extraordinary caution about the severely depleted front line comes as up to 1,200 officers face the axe as part of efforts to cut £40million from police budgets.

Last night, justice spokesman for scottish

Labour Daniel Johnson said: ‘Under the SNP policing is increasingly centralised, while the number of officers on the beat is falling.’

Mr Steele said in some areas, the number of officers available for shifts had decreased over the past decade by between a third and a half.

He added: ‘There probably wouldn’t be a single police officer in Scotland who would tell you that the same resources are available now as ten or 15 years ago.

‘It used to be the case that in Inverness, for example, you would have a dozen or so officers on a typical shift and now they might be lucky to have six.

‘This is made worse by the closure of police stations, particularly in more rural areas, because those stations perhaps had only one or two officers but they contributed to the overall number of officers available.

‘In some areas, beat policing has effectively died off entirely – to the immense frustration of the officers themselves, who are run ragged.

‘The public have given up, to some extent, because they think police won’t come when they report crime.

‘When they eventually do get in touch – because they can’t tolerate it any more – the situation has

‘Stretched to breaking point’

deteriorated so much that it is harder for us to respond effectively.

‘It is a true a lot of policing may be “unseen” – tackling serious organised crime, for example – but police and the Government have a job to do to convince people this work is more important than the day-to-day reality of their lived experience. I’m not sure anyone has given that much thought.’

Meanwhile, Police Scotland’s own research indicates that 37 per cent of Scots believe crime is rising in their area.

But asked if they knew they had a ‘local policing team’, 53 per cent of respondents said no, while 47.2 per cent said they were ‘reassured’ when they saw officers on the streets. The Your View Counts 2016-17 survey received responses from 18,894 people. The figures come amid repeated claims from the Scottish Government that recorded crime is at a historic low.

Scottish Tory justice spokesman Liam Kerr said: ‘Local communities clearly feel reassured by a local police presence, so the lack of awareness of local policing teams is concerning.

‘It is important that local police officers are approachable to law-abiding members of the public but Police Scotland must also ensure that they are keeping the public safe and dealing appropriately with offenders.’ Analysis by Scottish Labour claims to show policing has become more reactive due to police cuts and centralisation.

The research shows that the number of recorded motor vehicle offences has fallen by more 168,000 (57 per cent) from 295,000 to 127,000 between 2013-14 and 2017-18.

Labour attributes most of this decrease to a drop in offences such as speeding or unlawful use of a motor vehicle.

Mr Steele said ‘the decline in proactive police activity comes as no surprise’ as officers are ‘stretched to breaking point’.

A Police Scotland spokesman said: ‘Our officers interact with members of their local communities on a day-to-day basis. These officers are building relationships and establishing bonds of trust with people of all ages so as to encourage them to contact the police in times of need.’

On the Labour analysis, the spokesman said the force was ‘committed to an ongoing calendar of proactive campaigns and awareness-raising to encourage people to play a part in keeping themselves safe’.

He added: ‘Police numbers have remained consistently high since the creation of Police Scotland. The front line of policing goes beyond uniformed officers on the street.

‘[It] includes officers working in less visible but vital areas which protect the public, such as preventing and investigating serious and organised crime, cybercrime and abuse of children and vulnerable people.’

THE so-called Thin Blue Line, the police who stand between the law-abiding public and a deeply dangerous criminal element, is becoming vanishingly slight.

Such is the scarcity of officers on the beat, the public are losing faith in the police’s ability to keep them safe. Meanwhile, the police themselves are becoming frustrated that other duties keep them off the streets where they are needed most.

Worryingly, this grim assessment of policing today comes not from a political party but from frontline officers themselves via their ‘union’, the Scottish Police Federation.

Police Scotland was created with indecent haste and despite repeated warnings that a unitary force would struggle to handle the diverse needs of a country such as Scotland with its mix of vast rural areas and dense urban environments.

The mantra was that savings would be made but the harsh reality is all too clear – instead of promised economies, apparently based on back-of-an-envelope guesswork, the force faces ongoing cuts.

No surprise that these cutbacks have forced police retrenchment to the extent that they are disappearing from some areas.

Calum Steele, SPF general secretary, is clear about the scale of the problem: ‘In some areas, beat policing has effectively died off entirely.’

Coupled with a relentless SNP soft-touch justice agenda that puts criminals and not victims centre stage, no wonder public trust is being eroded.

Crime, we are constantly told, is at record low levels, but isn’t the truth simply that reporting of crime – especially the low-grade thuggery and vandalism that does so much to blight lives – is down? The public know the hard-pressed rank-and-file officers are too busy to respond.

Humza Yousaf was a deeply unimpressive Transport Minister. Now he has a vital brief as Justice Secretary where a similarly lacklustre performance is utterly unacceptable.

A government’s No1 priority is keeping its citizens safe. What will Mr Yousaf do to make Police Scotland fit for this pivotal task?